Tag: Football

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The Manchester United academy is one of the most celebrated in world football.

United have managed to produce talent after talent that has gone on to dominate the game.

From the time of George Best to modern days with Marcus Rashford, the academy has always been a source of pride, providing a pathway to stardom.

Beyond the academy, football has always been a sport rich in family legacies.

Father-son duos have long been a fascinating element in the game.

Think of Peter and Kasper Schmeichel, both English Premier League winning goalkeepers. Father Peter won it at Manchester United, while son Kasper won it with Leicester City.

Johan and Jordi Cruyff represented the Netherlands on the world stage, with Johan leaving a legacy as one of the greatest ever.

Jordi even had a short spell at Old Trafford in the mid ’90s.

Both became managers, with Johan Cruyff changing the landscape of football with his style ‘total football’.

There are also the Redknapps – Harry as a celebrated manager and his son Jamie as a English Premier League star and now media pundit.

Football, it seems, runs deep in certain families.

Manchester United is no exception to this trend.

There are several young players currently progressing through the ranks of their academy, having famous fathers.

Here are four academy stars with famous footballing fathers.

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Manchester United had a fantastic showing this week against Barnsley in the Carabao Cup third round tie.

The match up saw The Red Devils dominate to a 7-0 victory taking them through to the fourth round.

United had some massive performances from Alejandro Garnacho with two goals and assists, and Christian Eriksen and Marcus Rashford both with a brace and assist.

However, one of United’s young strikers has gone and grabbed himself a perfect hattrick.

With goals from both feet and his head, promising forward, Louie Bradbury, is on the brink of being called up to Manchester United’s Under-18s side.

Last season Bradbury netted 40 goals at Under-16s level, as well as mixing in with older age groups at summer tournaments in pre-season.

This week United’s under-17s side to play a friendly match with Preston North End, and won the game 5-0.

Bradbury shared the details on the match via Instagram, posting his shirt and boots, with the caption including, ‘Perfect hat-trick’.

This isn’t Bradbury’s first hattrick of the month though, having netted three on his international debut for the Wales Under-17s side.

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Old Trafford has been Manchester United’s home ground since 1910.

The stadium’s overall capacity is 74,310 and has undergone several expansions over the last 30 years.

Since Sir Jim Ratcliffe took over football operations at United this year, he has expressed a desire to improve the club’s stadium.

There is much speculation over whether this will be in the form of an Old Trafford refurbishment or an entirely new stadium.

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New reports from the Daily Mail suggest that Ratcliffe is leaning towards the latter.

It is thought that the INEOS CEO wants to build a ‘Wembley of the North’ for United.

One proposed idea was to build a new stadium but still keep Old Trafford and scale its’ size down.

The plan would have been to reduce the capacity to 30,000 seats for the club’s women and academy sides.

The new stadium would be used to host the men’s first-team matches.

However, this plan would likely cost hundreds of millions to materialise, which is deterring United’s owners from committing to it.

Instead, Ratcliffe may want to entirely demolish Old Trafford and build a new £2bn home stadium.

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Over 100 years of history is attached to Old Trafford, which would put many United fans off Ratcliffe’s proposal.

In the case of a full demolition, sentimental artefcats associated with Old Trafford would likely be preserved.

These include the Munich clock and memorial, as well as statues of Sir Alex Ferguson and others.

As much as the plan of a new stadium may be beneficial in the long-term, nostalgia makes the idea of Old Trafford being demolished a tough pill to swallow.

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Despite securing a massive midfield signing in Manuel Ugarte, Manchester United are still scouting Europe for more reinforcements.

United spent all summer focussed on Ugarte, being their priority signing to partner Kobbie Mainoo in the centre of the pitch.

The Uruguayan midfielder has now had his first full outing with The Red Devils, featuring in United’s 7-0 win over Barnsley in the Carabao Cup this week.

However, United are now looking back to Europe to sign another midfielder, with Newcastle United also looking at one of their targets.

TNT Sport Brazil has now reported that the Premier League clubs are looking at Atalanta’s star Ederson.

The Red Devils have been linked with Ederson this summer as a potential option, however it now appears that they are continuing their pursuit of the Brazilian star.

At the end of the summer transfer window, Manchester United submitted a €50 million bid for Ederson, which was rejected with the Serie A side unable to find a replacement in time.

However, the two English clubs are also up against Juventus and Barcelona in scouting the Brazilian.

It’s previously been reported that Ederson is “curious” about the Premier League, which could give United the edge, however they’ll still need to fight off Newcastle to secure the star.

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After a long summer without a club, former Manchester United striker, Anthony Martial, has officially found his new home.

Martial left United back in July after his contract ended, bringing his nine-year stint at Old Trafford to a close. Throughout the summer, clubs like Lyon, Marseille and Atalanta have contacted the 28-year-old, however he rejected their advances.

However, the last month has seen the most movement with Martial, with Greek club AEK Athens and Brazilian side Flamengo in a two-horse race to sign the striker.

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Whilst it looked likely that the former Red Devil would be joining his former teammate Memphis Depay in moving to Brazil, negotiations came to a close over salary demands.

However, this hasn’t been an issue for AEK Athens, who have now made Martial their highest-earning player in their history, having officially signed the striker. Martial is reported as being set to earn £2.5 million per year at the Greek capital, which over his three-year contract will be paying him around £7.5 million.

AEK have now taken to X to formally unveil their new signing, saying:

“The magician is coming!!
Appointment at the airport!!
Arrival: Anthony Martial
Time: 20:40
Location: El. Venizelos airport Meeting point: Exit 7”

Ο μάγος έρχεται!!!
Ραντεβού στο αεροδρόμιο!!!
Arrival: Anthony Martial
Time: 20:40
Location: El. Venizelos airport Meeting point: Exit 7#aekfc #aekfcseason2024_2025 #summertransfers #Martial pic.twitter.com/yls71N3NJP

— AEK F.C. (@AEK_FC_OFFICIAL) September 18, 2024

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Manchester United spent €122m on defenders in this summer’s transfer window.

Both Leny Yoro and Matthijs De Ligt were brought in to add depth at centre-back.

Harry Maguire, Johnny Evans and Victor Lindelof’s contracts all expire at the end of the season.

With this in mind, it may be wise for United to continue shopping in the centre-back market.

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Since he took over as United manager, Erik ten Hag has spent €327m on players that have previously played in the Eredivisie.

Next summer, Ten Hag may have another defender from the Dutch league who is willing to join United.

Manchester United have been pointed in the direction of a PSV centre-back by journalist Suleyman Ozturk.

Speaking to VI Uncensored, he said that Olivier Boscagli should be playing for United because he is “so good”.

“[Boscagli] should actually be in defence at Manchester United”, he said.

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Boscagli is an experienced professional, having played in Ligue 1, Eredivisie, the Europa League, and the Champions League.

He has made 229 appearances in his professional career so far.

The 26-year-old’s estimated market value is around €27m, according to Transfermarkt.

This summer, Brighton were interested in Boscalgi but were only willing to offer €10m.

Their bid was rejected by PSV, whose asking price for the Frenchman is currently unknown.

If United could escape with a cheap deal for him, he could add some solid experience in defence.

With some defenders’ contracts expiring and Ten Hag’s tendency to shop back home in the Netherlands, a move for Boscagli could very well be on the cards.

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Tuesday 17th September saw Manchester United dominate Barnsley in a 7-0 win in the Carabao Cup, thanks to incredible performances from both Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford.

The pair managed to grab a brace each, with Garnacho setting up Rashford’s goals and Rashford contributing to one of Garnacho’s. These strong performances came off the back of both men grabbing a goal in United’s 3-0 win over Southampton in the Premier League.

Whist Garnacho appears to be going from strength to strength, with Erik ten Hag claiming he will be a world-class player before long, Rashford appears to be finding his form again amid much media criticism.

Marcus Rashford finds his form

In a bid to continue developing and get out of a slump, Rashford has been undertaking one-on-one training with new couch and club legend Ruud van Nistelrooy. The pair have been working on this positional awareness, with a focus on his back post awareness and runs across the box.

Van Nistelrooy aims to help Rashford become more of a clinical finisher. Something we’re starting to see glimpses of once more.

Now, after such an impressive win, Rashford has taken to social media to thank Garnacho.

In an Instagram post, Rashford said: “Qualified! Well done lads. Thanks for the reminder @garnacho7,” alongside the backhand index pointing right emoji, two men pouting emojis and the backhand index pointing left emoji.

The emojis are a direct replica of the pair celebrating Rashford’s second goal, with his signature ‘workout’ celebration, which saw him shut his eyes and point his index finger to his temple.

However, the striker has recognised Garnacho’s role in the celebration, after Rashford didn’t celebrate with it after his goal in the Southampton game.

Erik ten Hag’s post-game comments

Speaking in a post-match interview, Erik ten Hag said: “First of all, it was a difficult start but, once we found the shape, it’s not so weird because it’s the first time this team is playing together.

He continued: “Once we found the shape and the patterns, we scored some great goals, starting with [Marcus] Rashford which was a brilliant goal but I’d also say some other goals were really good. We played with a lot of speed and we were very ruthless in front of the goal.

“The key was finding the shape and, of course, the right attitude. We were 100 per cent concentrated and we certainly played very good.

“I think it was enjoyable to watch and also the fans they liked it and appreciated it. You could feel again the good bond between the team and the fans and we gave the fans some nice goals.”

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Erik ten Hag has been more than willing to integrate young talent into his Manchester United side.

In last night’s 7-0 win over Barnsley, four players under the age of 21 appeared in the matchday squad.

At Ajax, Ten Hag gifted 23 academy graduates their debut in the Netherlands.

Alejandro Garnacho (20) and Kobbie Mainoo (19) were recently nominated for the Kopa trophy.

They both broke into the senior ranks at United under Ten Hag.

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However, Ten Hag has been hesitant to phase young star Harry Amass into United’s first team.

Amass was not included in the matchday squad yesterday against Barnsley.

Ten Hag has decided that he is not yet ready to take the next step in his career, according to Givemesport.

The 17-year-old was included on the bench seven times last season but is yet to make his senior debut.

Manchester United technical director Jason Wilcox wanted Ten Hag to play Amass towards the end of last season.

He wanted to see if the left-back was fit to begin his integration into the senior squad.

After allowing him to train with the first team in February 2024, Ten Hag instead opted to play more experienced players.

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Over the summer, Luke Shaw was full of praise for his teammate, when asked which player fans should look out for in the future.

“He’s a young left-back from Man United. Harry Amass”, Shaw said.

Last week, Amass was again called to train with Manchester United’s first-team.

It seems that it is a matter of time until the left-back gets an opportunity in a professional game.

For now, Amass will have to wait until he is ready for the intensity and physical demands of the Premier League.

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Manchester United’s current injury list extends to six players who have been ruled out of action.

2023 signing Andre Onana has cemented himself as United’s number one goalkeeper.

Behind him, Altay Bayindir is Ten Hag’s second choice between the posts.

Bayindir has only made two appearances for United, including in last night’s 7-0 win over Barnsley.

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His closest competition as United’s back-up goalkeeper is currently playing in Austria.

Radek Vitek joined BW Linz on loan in the Austrian Bundesliga on August 21st.

He has had a great start to the season, keeping two clean sheets in three games.

However, Vitek’s dream start appears to be short lived, after enduring a major setback.

Linz have revealed that the Manchester United loanee has suffered a serious injury.

“He tore his cruciate and medial ligaments during the warm-up during the 1-0 derby victory.”

“The 20-year-old will therefore be out for several weeks”, the club announced.

A cruciate ligament tear usually takes between six to 12 months to recover from.

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Vitek left United in August to join Linz in search of an opportunity to play as a first-team goalkeeper.

He would have hoped to come back to United with more experience and challenge Bayindir for his back-up role.

Vitek has previously had a successful loan spell with Accrington Stanley, between January to May 2024.

This latest injury will undoubtedly halt Vitek’s development progress.

However, the 20-year-old Czech talent will likely have many more opportunities to impress in his young career.

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Manchester United’s youth academy is inundated with talented goalkeepers right now.

The Red Devils have recently signed Hubert Graczyk to join Dermot Mee in playing for the Under-21s squad, whilst Radek Vitek and Elyh Harrison have been sent out on loan.

Vitek is currently in Austria with BW Linz where he’s made four appearances so far, with an impressive three clean sheets. Meanwhile, Harrison is in the sixth tier of English football with Chester, having made three appearances with two clean sheets and only one goal conceded.

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However, United have also sent one of their other young goalkeepers out on loan.

When their squad for the 2024/25 Premier League campaign was released last week, Cameron Byrne-Hughes was listed as out on loan.

It’s now been revealed that the 16-year-old is actually on loan with Bolton Wanderers according to Red Reveal on X.

The youngster is playing for Bolton’s youth side, having played against Salford City for the Under-17s on Tuesday 17th September, and had a clean sheet for the Under-19s side against Morecambe on the weekend.

With United keen on choosing the best routes for all of their players’ professional development, retaining some whilst sending others on loan, The Red Devils will be keeping a close eye on Byrne-Hughes’ progress at Bolton.

Confirmed: Cameron Byrne-Hughes is on loan with Bolton Wanderers U19.#mufc announced him in their Under 21 Premier League list with a side note of him being out on loan – at the time we didn’t know where!#MUAcademy #loanwatch pic.twitter.com/hGppjoxSl9

— RedReveal (@RedReveal) September 16, 2024

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