The Ruben Amorim era at Manchester United is set to debut this month. While the new manager will certainly have his work cut out for him, a perhaps underutilized area he can look to for success is the club’s storied youth academy.
It’s been a long 11 years since Manchester United hoisted the English Premier League trophy. A mix of 10 managers, interim managers, and caretakers have struggled to uphold Sir Alex Ferguson’s standard of success, and while there have been a handful of bright spots throughout their tenures, United is far from the monolithic side that it once was.
Portuguese wunderkind Ruben Amorim will be the next to take the spot at the helm of football’s second-most valuable club, and many are optimistic that the 39-year-old can be the one to return the Red Devils to greatness. To do so, he can look to the club’s promising crop of young talents.
As a case study, let’s journey to Catalonia, where after a period of tumult brought on by financial mismanagement, FC Barcelona have become a force.
Barça currently sit atop La Liga, fresh off the back of a 4-0 drubbing of their El Clasico rivals Real Madrid. Six of Barcelona’s starting 11 were products of the La Masia Academy, with five being aged 21 or under. Financial struggles limited the club in the transfer landscape, which led to a fearless promotion and utilization of its youth products over the past two seasons; most notably Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi.
La Masia is one of the most famed academies in world football, and at the moment there isn’t a club that has shown as much faith in their academy products as the Blaugrana. While there is a stroke of luck involved — it just happened that a generational talent like Yamal came up in a time where the club was more or less forced to focus on its academy products — La Masia has been a consistent source of success for the club for decades. Barcelona’s revitalization under new manager Hansi Flick is largely due to the club’s faith in its young players.
The success of Barcelona and La Masia shines a massive spotlight on Manchester United’s use — or lack thereof — of their academy. United’s Carrington is right up there with La Masia as a known incubator for top-tier talent. Players that have risen through Carrington’s ranks have made massive impacts, whether with the Red Devils or after transfers elsewhere.
Just last year, Man U and Barcelona met in the Europa League knockout stages, and the English side came out on top over two legs in one of the most impressive wins of then-manager Erik ten Hag’s reign. Since then, however, the two clubs have gone in completely different directions. Barça have experienced their aforementioned renaissance, while United are about to start life under another new manager.
Amorim’s appointment at the helm of Manchester United could be the spark needed to once again turn to and trust their academy. Throughout his career, Amorim has regularly given youth and homegrown players opportunities to perform, which was no doubt a factor in the hiring process.
Since Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS took over at United, they have made moves that would indicate a shift in mentality. The coup of Leny Yoro was the biggest statement of intent. Beating Real Madrid to the signing of the 18-year-old showed that the top brass of the club are no longer interested in missing out on elite European talent.
Making these signings before the players have hit their primes and their transfer fees inevitably multiply is what the best-run clubs do, and United are looking to position themselves once more as one of them.
In some of the best years at Old Trafford, the Red Devils would sign young emerging talent and blend them in with established first-teamers and academy products to form a winning formula which was most often seen under Ferguson. However, in recent years that approach has shifted to spending exorbitant fees on already established players either midway through or on the back end of their primes. More often than not, these signings have fell flat of their expectations.
If young talent is what’s so desperately craved, now is as good a time as any to turn to Carrington.
It’s widely considered amongst Manchester United fans that the level of their academy is the best it has been in years, and the proof is in the pudding. Just last season, their under-18 squad, led by manager Adam Lawrence, swept the English titles at that level and ended the season as Premier League North Champions, Premier League Cup Champions, and Premier League National Champions.
This season, they have gone from strength to strength, securing the signing of exciting winger Samuel Lusale from Crystal Palace and the young phenom Chido Obi-Martin from Arsenal, who bagged a hat trick inside 20 minutes on his debut. These signings have bolstered an already stacked squad and see United’s U-18 side currently top of the league, winning all eight of their games and outscoring opponents 40-8 in the process.
Their U-21 team isn’t nearly as dominant, but there have been numerous individual performances that have caught the eye so far this season from players who look ready for the next step into senior football.
They certainly wouldn’t be the first.
Notable Recent Carrington Alums
Angel Gomes, Lille: One of the most notable academy graduates in the last decade, Gomes has led Ligue 1 in assists and won his first England senior call-up in the last 12 months.
Matej Kovar, Bayer Leverkusen: Part of Bayer Leverkusen’s invincibles, Kovar was the club’s cup goalkeeper during its stellar 2023-24 run, which included a DFB-Pokal title and a runner-up finish in the Europa League.
Max Oyedele, Legia Warsaw: He recently earned his first Poland senior call-up, and has massively impressed for Legia Warsaw since moving this summer.
Álvaro Carreras, Benfica: The left back has shone in the Champions League for Benfica, and United are reportedly considering activating his buy-back clause.
Ones to Watch For Under Amorim
Carrington has a proven track record in recent years of churning out players who are ready to make an immediate mark at the senior level, and Manchester United fans would unanimously agree that one of the brightest spots of Erik ten Hag’s tenure was the breakthrough of youth.
Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho were playing football in the Manchester United under-18 setup just two years ago. This past week they respectively placed third and sixth in the Kopa Trophy for the best young player in the world at the Ballon d’Or ceremony. These two are all the proof you need that the ethos of the Red Devils is still alive and well, long living through the moniker, “If you’re good enough, you’re old enough.”
With that being said, who are the names that you should keep an eye on to take the big leap under Ruben Amorim?
Harry Amass, 17
The English left-back, formerly of Watford, impressed greatly this preseason and is a regular at the England youth levels. His technical brilliance and attacking prowess make him an ideal candidate to slot into a wingback position. With Amorim’s preferred formation through his career being a back three, it’s safe to assume that Amass will have as good a chance as any to contribute given United’s continued left back struggles.
Shea Lacey, 17
Highly touted as maybe the best talent that Carrington boasts at the moment, Lacey is a diminutive attacking midfielder whose dribbling, flair, and agility have caught the eye of many. I’m normally against comparisons, but it’s so hard to watch Lacey and not see a lot of fellow Mancunian Phil Foden.
His eye for goal and vision for a killer pass have made him a threat at every level he’s played, and with Bruno Fernandes not getting any younger, United may have an heir-apparent waiting in the wings.
Dan Gore, 20
A player who came through at a similar time as Mainoo, Gore is a creative central midfielder who boasts a passing ability and level of calm on the ball far beyond his years. However, Mainoo’s brilliance and breakthrough meant that Gore would inevitably end up further down the pecking order. Add this to the fact that he’s not the most physically imposing player, and you could start to see some of the reasoning that may have seen him fail to make the full first-team transition yet.
But with Christian Eriksen and Casemiro soon to be on their way out, and the departure of Scott McTominay and Mason Mount’s continued battles with injury, we could see a new midfield metronome promoted from within.
Even outside of those on the cusp of a potential first team breakthrough, United have a ridiculous wealth of talent when you look further down the age groups. Sixteen-year-olds like centreback Godwill Kukonki and forward Bendito Mantato have long been receiving rave reviews, and both have immense physical tools that could see them fast-tracked. Jayce Fitzgerald joined Jack Fletcher on the bench for United’s 1-1 draw against Chelsea, and both 17-year-olds look like sensational prospects, as evidenced by their increasing involvement around the first-team setup.
There is no shortage of talent in Carrington — as a matter of fact, there may almost be a surplus. The best way forward for Manchester United is to go back to their roots, take inspiration from clubs like Barcelona, and trust their youth.
