A marvellous story has unfolded about two brothers who have represented Manchester United’s youth teams, and they’re currently experiencing football together on the senior international stage for Gibraltar.
Manchester United are always looking to produce the best young talent. It was the same case all those years ago under Sir Matt Busby, then Sir Alex Ferguson, and Ineos has shown plenty of signs that they want to invest in the best young players in the world.
That, in turn, makes it more complicated for other youngsters in the academy to break through. It’s an obvious knock-on effect from increased competition, which can only be a good thing in terms of producing the best prospects for United’s first team.
However, United have 18 players on international duty this month.
One of them is United Academy prospect James Scanlon, who has shown positive signs in the youth teams this season.
James Scanlon playing for Manchester United U21s against Lincoln City
Photo by Manchester United/Manchester United via Getty Images
James Scanlon’s younger brother jokes about Gibraltar debut
In 2021, James and Luca Scanlon both joined United’s academy.
While James continues to impress for the under-21s under Travis Binnion’s guidance, Luca is developing at Burnley’s academy.
The youngest, Luca, has always looked up to James, but they are both senior internationals for Gibraltar.
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Just 57 days after Luca’s 16th birthday, he became a full international, which was a major moment for the Scanlon family, even though he came on as a substitute to replace his older brother.
“I told him the night before not to play my position,” James told The Guardian.
James, a right winger, joked at the time because his brother Luca tends to play on the left.
“It was a shock because I wasn’t expecting it,” Luca went on to explain. “I came on for him, which he wasn’t too happy about.”
The United prospect has been able to get over the brief upset.
He added: “I knew he’d be fine. The players all liked him. They all knew what he was about as a player. I knew he had the backing from everyone.”
When is James Scanlon in action for Gibraltar next?
Gibraltar have two World Cup qualifiers during the October international break.
James featured against North Caledonia on Wednesday night in a 2-0 defeat.
Gibraltar take on Croatia on Sunday night before Scanlon returns to United.
Hopefully, it grants another opportunity for a United youth player to gain more experience and enhance his development.