Manchester United’s U18 side were back in form on Wednesday night after struggles over the past few weeks.
It was an utterly dominant, statement performance by Adam Lawrence’s side against Chelsea.
Manchester United welcomed back a number of players which saw the U18 team at its strongest possible level – perhaps only missing Bendito Mantato.
United thrashed Chelsea 5-1 in the game, with Chido Obi stealing the headlines with his brilliant hat-trick.
William Murdock impressed with an incredible save which denied Chelsea a sure goal and kept United 3-1 ahead.
Another star performer was James Scanlon, as he continued his brilliant campaign.
READ: Man Utd under-18s top scorers and assists in 2024/25, all results
James Scanlon of Manchester United looks on during the The FA Youth Cup 5th Round match between Manchester United and Chelsea at Leigh Sports Vill...
Photo by Ben Roberts Photo/Getty Images
James Scanlon shines for Manchester United
Scanlon is slowly becoming a bit of a potential superstar for Manchester United, with his performances this season placing him right up there with the very best Carrington has to offer.
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The No.7 scored a brace against Chelsea with two great goals.
First, he headed home a Jaydan Kamason – who could be United’s very own Geovany Quenda – cross with a stooping header. Scanlon’s second goal saw him convert after a brilliant Jack Fletcher assist.
This saw Scanlon make it 15 goals and six assists this season across U18 and U21 football, with the level he’s currently playing at, beginning to look more and more simple.
READ: Man Utd under-21s top scorers and assists in 2024/25, all results
After the game, Scanlon took to Instagram, sharing a message to fans accompanied by photos from the game.
“Onto the next round”, Scanlon wrote along with a tick and a ‘+2’ and a ball emoji to symbolise his brace.
READ: Who is Manchester United’s James Scanlon? Age, Position, Height, International caps and more
Chido Obi and Gabriele Biancheri react to Scanlon performance
Scanlon’s performance was excellent, and his United teammates were impressed.
Gabriele Biancheri was clearly shocked by Scanlon’s first goal as he responded by asking, “Since when could you head?”. Ethan Wheatley also questioned this as he added, “A header????”.
Chido Obi also reacted, commenting with two clapping emojis in response to Scanlon’s performance. Shea Lacey shared the exact same response.
Both Tyler Fletcher and Jack both added fire emojis in response to the post.
Jacob Devaney commented with praise as he wrote, “Top” with a clapping emoji. While Amir Ibragimov made fun of Scanlon’s writing, “eyes closed”, with a laughing emoji.