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'Really difficult' - inside Manchester United mentality for potential FA Youth Cup success

Man Utd have won the FA Youth Cup more than any other club and are looking to win the competition again this season.

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The U18s are in the Youth Cup semi-final.

Manchester United can progress to the FA Youth Cup final if they beat Aston Villa on Monday night.

The Under-18s have brushed aside Coventry City, Preston North End, Chelsea and Arsenal to get to the semi-final of the prestigious competition and will now take on Aston Villa in Birmingham.

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The game will be played at Villa Park and Manchester City could await in the final, provided they beat Watford in the other semi-final. Nick Cox is the head of United's academy and he spoke to the Manchester Evening News earlier in the week to discuss the brilliant Youth Cup campaign.

Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo were part of a talented side that won the Youth Cup in 2022, and it would be an achievement for Cox to oversee a second triumph in the competition.

Nonetheless, Cox rejected the suggestion he would be personally involved in any potential success. "Pride is a funny word because that makes it about me. I’m in this line of work because I love football and I love trying to support young people to achieve stuff that is really difficult," he said.

"If they have an opportunity to play in a final, and that is obviously an if because we have a really tough game, I will get an enormous amount of joy from watching them have that experience.

"I turn up to work and think about how I'm going to get players to our first-team, but I have this broader view that the whole process has got to be the most joyful, life-enriching, life-changing experience that is unrivalled.

"If they get an opportunity to run out at Old Trafford in the final, which is a unique experience because finals aren't held at Old Trafford unless you're a rugby player, then it's an opportunity to play a final in front of a home crowd.

"The Youth Cup is special for every kid who plays football in the country. Everyone wants to win it and it's even more special here because of our historic connections to the Youth Cup.

"It would be a special night that will help prepare them to be successful in their careers, or for those who don't have careers, it will be a night they'll remember for the rest of their lives.

"Who could not want to sit back and watch kids have an amazing experience like that? So yeah, it would be a wonderful night, and I would imagine we would get a crowd of supporters."

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