Kai Rooney has shown his class with his reaction to Shea Lacey's Manchester United heroics against Roma. With United 2-1 down and staring at a 10th successive game without a win, academy graduate Lacey helped change the game after springing from the bench with 15 minutes left.
The 19-year-old provided the assist for both Matheus Cunha goals as the gloom around Old Trafford was lifted with a stunning 3-2 win. Rooney and Lacey are former team-mates in the youth team and it's clear the son of United great Wayne isn't envious of his pal's burgeoning progress.
Reaction to the Roma win
He reacted to Lacey's post following the Roma game by writing "the best" with heart and praise emojis. With a picture of being kissed on the head by Cunha, Lacey had written: "Until the very end. Thank you Old Trafford."
It wasn't the first time Rooney, 17, had publicly praised Lacey. Having been earmarked for a first-team role, Lacey impressed in pre-season, scoring a fine goal in the 5-0 win over Rosenborg. In sharing a clip of the goal on Instagram, Rooney, 16, wrote: "My brother."
Team-mates and coach respond
Meanwhile, Lacey's post after his game-changing cameo against Roma received numerous glowing replies from United players, with Cunha writing: "It shows how much I believe in you." Harry Maguire posted "Top class", Diogo Dalot said "Proud of you kid", while Bruno Fernandes added "My kid".
Michael Carrick, whose son Jacey, 16, is part of the United academy too, was similarly impressed with Lacey. The head coach said: "Not going too over the top, but at the same time absolutely delighted for Shea. We love him to bits. He's a great young man, he's desperate to do well, he's got great ability. So in terms of coming inside and finding the pass, that's not surprising."
"He's got that little glint in his eye, he plays with a bit of mischief, if you like, so he's always looking to have that. But I was just as happy seeing him defending as a right-back when we needed that in the moments when, as a rounded footballer, you've got to be able to do that. So I was just as pleased seeing him do that in the defensive side, and seeing younger players take the opportunity. I think he gave everybody a bit of a lift coming on the pitch, and it was fantastic to see, and he made the most of what he had tonight."
Next steps for Lacey
Lacey has now made six appearances this season and will be hoping to be involved when United host Aston Villa on Sunday.
