The MEN have looked back on the academy's season so far.
Manchester United's academy has reached the halfway point of the campaign and there is plenty to digest. The academy enjoyed one of its finest seasons in 2023/24 but club staff have been intent on moving forwards, developing more young players and targeting even more success.
The Manchester Evening News has covered more academy games than any other outlet and the purpose of this article is to provide insight into the last six months in the youth set-up.
There have been memorable wins, brilliant individual performances, promising youngsters promoted to first-team training and squads, and a first senior appearance handed out.
There have also been changes - a mix of good and not so good. Ineos have begun to have an impact, Erik ten Hag left the club and some academy staff have felt added pressure.
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The Under-18s won a remarkable treble last term, winning two of those trophies at the expense of Manchester City, and members of that talented side have transitioned to the Under-21s.
There was a feeling that supremely talented U18 side could be on par with the Class of '22, which included Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo, so supporters are hoping at least one player will be able to break into the first-team squad and, more importantly, stay there permanently.
The likes of Ethan Wheatley, Jack Fletcher, Jayce Fitzgerald, Harry Amass, Jack Kingdon and Louis Jackson and are among the promising youngsters who starred in that campaign.
Wheatley and Amass were taken to the United States for pre-season in the summer. Wheatley became the 250th player to make a debut from United's academy in April and Amass was tipped up to make a senior bow this season after playing a prominent role in the summer friendlies.
"If you drew a No.9, you’d draw him looking like Ethan," said Binnion in an interview with the MEN in August. Wheatley has been included in nine first-team squads and was given a cameo in the 5-2 win against Leicester by Ruud van Nistelrooy but a loan might be on the cards in January.
Amass' situation feels different. The defender travelled down to Wembley for the Community Shield and it almost felt inevitable he would receive a debut given the injuries at left-back.
Considering Shaw and Malacia were unavailable, Amass would have seen the start of the season as the perfect chance to make his debut but he's continued to play for the U21s.
Amass has been overlooked and the longer his wait for a debut goes on, it feels likelier it might not happen and there have been reports of Aston Villa being interested in signing him.
United have also entered talks with Paraguay club Cerro Porteno to sign Diego Leon. The talented 17-year-old could move to Manchester in a £3.1million deal and plays at left-back.
Collyer was another breakout youngster on the pre-season tour. He was handed his senior debut by Ten Hag against City in the Community Shield and made his Premier League debut when he replaced Casemiro at half-time as United trailed 2-0 to Liverpool at Old Trafford.
A source said in the summer that Ten Hag 'really liked' Collyer and another source said he records 'freakish' running stats in training that are only bettered by Bruno Fernandes. Collyer had perhaps gone under the radar until his debut but he's considered a leading prospect by club staff.
Collyer was rewarded with a new deal in July that extended his stay until 2027 and Ten Hag insisted on attending his contract signing, which further confirmed the previous boss' admiration.
The opportunity to sign Collyer from Brighton arose unexpectedly in 2022. He was regarded as one of the finest midfielders in the country in his age group and a source at United has admitted they were surprised to get the chance to sign him - but they were delighted that they did.
Collyer's season was interrupted by a minor injury in October but he recently returned to full fitness and was on the bench against Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League last week.
Gore and Collyer were in the same year in school - they are both aged 20 - and are currently in the same boat. Gore picked up a small injury around the same time as Collyer and a source recently said they needed to focus on getting back to peak fitness levels ahead of January.
It's been suggested that Collyer is a more athletic player and Gore is technically better. They both operate in midfield but play different roles and they have been backed to have fulfilling careers by coaches who have helped them on their respective journeys, so will that be at United?
Both could still have long-term futures at the club but the reality is they could make permanent exits in the summer, depending on how the next six months unfold, of course.
United will have to raise funds to operate within Profit and Sustainability rules (PSR) and the sale of academy graduate represents 'total profit', so they are incredibly helpful in the books.
In terms of the players who have made the most progress, there are many who deserve a mention, and it's worth starting with Ethan Ennis, who has 10 goals in 15 appearances.
Ennis arrived from Liverpool with a high profile in 2021 but ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his knee a year later. He returned from that problem last season, quickly got back up to speed and has further built a reputation as a goal scoring winger in this campaign.
The 20-year-old has been the U21s' biggest goal threat and impressively netted a hat-trick against Altrincham in the National League Cup last month. Ennis is attracting loan interest ahead of January and talks are ongoing, with clubs in the Championship and League One having enquired.
Jack Fletcher, son of Darren Fletcher, was signed from City because he had first-team potential and his brace against Barnsley's senior side in the EFL Trophy in August was special.
Barnsley took a 2-0 lead in the first half and they looked to be on their way to a comfortable victory, however, Ennis made it 2-1 with a smart finish in the 81st minute and Fletcher, who was introduced from the bench, scored a few minutes later with an unbelievable goal from around 35 yards.
Fletcher struck an instinctive volley that dipped under the crossbar to equalise and scored again in the 87th minute, cutting inside and finding the corner to complete a 3-2 comeback.
United drew 3-3 with Doncaster Rovers in their second EFL Trophy group game and lost 4-1 against an almost full strength Huddersfield Town side but there were positives to take from that game against the Terriers, who scored twice in the final minutes of the contest.
The U21s missed out on progressing to the knockout stages by a point and it might have been a different story if the Huddersfield game hadn't come during the international break.
"It's always great learning for our lads and across the three EFL Trophy games we've taken a lot from it," Binnion told the MEN. "We had five points before tonight and coming to Huddersfield during the international break, it was always going to be a big ask but we want those opportunities.
"They're our best games. When you don't have the B team system that they do on the continent, we're desperate for these games and that's why we're disappointed we've gone out."
Sekou Kone, who was signed from Malian club Guidars FC for around £1million in the summer, made his first start against Huddersfield and there were signs of quality, albeit he was still raw, which a high-ranking first-team staff member discussed on the night of the match.
Sources have reiterated patience will be key with Kone. The youngster demonstrated his quality against Huddersfield but it became clear that he will need time to adjust to English football.
United have given Kone the opportunity to train with the first-team at Carrington but he has spent the majority of his time around the U21 group and needs to physically develop.
Jack Moorhouse came on from the bench at the John Smith's Stadium and can be considered as a hidden gem in the academy, given his last few years were plagued by injuries.
Moorhouse has put those problems behind him this term and seems unaffected. His ball carrying prowess makes him stand out and he regularly drives the U21s down the pitch.
The midfielder is still just 18-years-old. There will be more to come from Moorhouse and the same can be said about the likes of Godwill Kukonki, Bendito Mantato, Amir Ibragimov and Jim Thwaites, as they are all aged 16 years old but have been given chances to train with the first-team.
The MEN exclusively revealed that Kukonki took part in Ruben Amorim's first training session last month and had already reported he had the required attributes to excel in senior football.
Although Kukonki travelled to face Ipswich Town for Amorim's first game in charge, he wasn't officially included in the squad - it was a great experience or him nonetheless - but he didn't have to wait long for that opportunity because he was named on the bench against Arsenal.
Left-footed centre-backs are worth their weight in gold in modern football and Kukonki could fit like a glove into Amorim's long-term plans. Mantato is another youngster who could eventually be a big winner from Amorim's arrival because he could develop into a top wing-back.
Mantato formerly played at left-back in academy fixtures, but he's gradually progressed to predominantly play on the right wing and his style has led to comparisons with Bukayo Saka, who also started his career as a defender before developing into an attacking player.
Amorim plays with wing-backs who are comfortable in defensive and attacking scenarios and it's thought Mantato's chances of breaking into the first-team have recently increased.
It would be a amiss not to mention Chido Obi-Martin in this segment. Obi-Martin's move to United from Arsenal in the summer was described by a source as a significant coup and there was huge interest in the transfer, which has led to fans being desperate for further updates.
There were some wild claims made when Obi-Martin signed, with some reports suggesting he was guaranteed to make a senior debut before the end of the season and others saying Van Nistelrooy was personally responsible for persuading the youth striker to swap London for Manchester.
Sources rubbished those claims and it was actually head of the academy Nick Cox and the head of academy recruitment Luke Fedorenko who were responsible for the deal.
As was already agreed, Obi-Martin signed his professional contract when he turned 17 at the end of November and he's made a strong first impression at Carrington by scoring seven goals.
United's coaches will be challenged with keeping Obi-Martin's feet on the ground as he progresses because he has a huge profile and more than 300,000 followers on Instagram.
Finally, Gabriele Biancheri has been scoring sensation for the U18s. The Welshman has 16 goals in 17 games for Adam Lawrence's side and has developed a habit of finding the net.
Just under five weeks after Amorim touched in Manchester, he attended his first academy game when he watched the U21s at Carrington last Saturday and the 39-year-old stood alongside Cox, Fletcher and technical director Jason Wilcox as Binnion's side thrashed Southampton.
A source said Amorim couldn't attend a game sooner due to his busy schedule, and the style and tactics used by the youth teams have been unchanged following his arrival.
There are transferable principles, though, and the U21s sometimes build from the back with three players during games. The way the academy play could be evaluated at the end of the season to further align with Amorim's philosophy but not much has changed in that regard, as of now.
That doesn't mean Ineos haven't had an impact. There has been a suggestion of tensions between Wilcox and some staff, and they are believed to be under added pressure to produce results.
Coaches at different age groups are feeling more scrutiny to win games, whereas in the past, the focus would solely be on youth development and not particularly the outcome of a fixture.
Some highly skilled staff were lost in Sir Jim Ratcliffe's club-wide restructure and there have been eyebrows raised at some academy hires, including the appointment of Simon Wiles from Salford City, who left his position as a first-team coach to become the Under-14 coach.
It initially appeared that Ineos' changes to the academy would be minimal, but it has become clear that this is not the case and it's been suggested not everything is as rosy as it may seem.
Ineos need to be careful when tinkering with the academy. United remain at the forefront of youth development, they have some incredible staff and Cox has led the youth system to enjoy a renaissance after a period of underachievement, so huge changes aren't required.
Elsewhere, MUTV has become a talking point among supporters. Coverage of youth games was scaled back and some supporters were angered by the lack of academy updates.
Around four months ago, the MEN contacted United for comment on the matter and they insisted they remained committed to youth coverage, while a source reiterated they appreciate the significant interest that its supporters have in the development of its youth players.
Sometimes U21 games can't be shown on MUTV because they clash with Premier League fixtures, but sources conceded that media resources need to be stretched across the men's, women's and academy teams, which means United are forced to make compromises.
The words 'hard choices' were used within United about what to cover and the club reluctantly feel they can't capture everything across the several different teams. It's understood the in-house coverage was indirectly impacted by job losses and now a single member of staff practically does three media roles on academy matchdays, which shows how resources are being stretched.
To United's credit, MUTV have shown more games after complaints from fans but the coverage is still not where it should be and there is no dedicated academy social media account.
There have been been some benefits from Ineos' running football operations, though. In October, the MEN revealed that Ogunneye, Kingdon and Ethan Williams had flown to Switzerland to train with FC Lausanne-Sport's first-team and that was agreed thanks to Ineos' multi-club model.
Ineos acquired Lausanne in 2017 and the agreement between the Swiss side and United gave academy players an overseas experience, which was considered a huge success.
United's agreement with Lausanne was the first of its kind but an academy trip to Ratcliffe-owned OGC Nice was arranged earlier in the year and that was another useful opportunity.
A source recently told the MEN there is still no better place for a young player to be because academy staff genuinely care about moulding good, hard working and polite people.
The core values in the academy remain and more special players are bound to emerge.
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