Seven Manchester United academy players were named on the first-team bench against Como on Wednesday night. Shea Lacey, Harry Amass, Dan Armer, Jack Fletcher and Tyler Fletcher were in the squad, while Jaydan Kamason and Tynan Thompson were named on the first-team bench for the first time.
Under-19s Lose to Como in Youth League
The Under-19s had played Como in the UEFA Youth League earlier that day. United's U19s were beaten 2-1 by Como, a disappointing result but not fatal as far as their chances of progressing are concerned. Academy sources recently expressed confidence in reaching the knockout stages of the competition, but United can no longer afford to put a foot wrong in their final three games to get through after losing two and winning one.
The Reds will play Roma at home next week, a must-win, before playing Sporting Lisbon away and RB Leipzig at home (they will not play Bayern Munich and Villarreal, as the first-team will in January). There was a bullish mood in the group after comfortably winning the first Youth League game against Sabah, but defeats to Atletico Madrid and Como over the last week have shown how tricky the competition can be.
Dan Gore Back at Carrington for Treatment
Dan Gore has been back at Carrington over the last fortnight, but no, he hasn't been recalled from his season-long loan at Luton Town. The midfielder has been back at United's training complex to receive treatment for a small injury which kept him out of Luton's games against Wycombe, MK Dons and Barnsley in League One.
Gore is set to return to action imminently, which will be welcome news for Luton boss Jack Wilshere. The youngster quickly became a starter for Luton after signing on deadline day, and Wilshere has liked what he has seen. "Dan's been top. He's aggressive, he's tenacious, he wants to get into duels, but he's also got quality," he said before Gore's small injury. "He gives us something a little bit different in midfield. He's got better and better, and I think there's more to come from him the more we work with him."
Ryan Giggs Attends Youth League Game
Ryan Giggs was in attendance at the U19s' game on Wednesday. Giggs had been invited to the game by Osian Roberts, an influential figure in Welsh football and a former backroom staff member for the national team, who is now head of development at Como. Giggs' son Zach is best friends with the Fletcher twins, so no doubt Giggs was delighted to see Jack get on the scoresheet with a well-taken goal.
Ibragimov on Learning from Cunha
Local United reporters who cover the academy have been promised a sit-down with Adam Lawrence and, potentially, an interview with a few players, but the club made sure to release an academy-focused podcast beforehand. Amir Ibragimov was the star of the show, confidently speaking and offering insight into his time at the club, and his quotes on learning from Matheus Cunha during training were particularly interesting.
"Bruno [Fernandes] was really helpful, but recently, me and Cunha had a really good connection," Ibragimov said. "Like, he helped me a lot because, coming to train with the first team, they are aggressive with you. It's like, because we're young, that doesn't mean they have to let us off, which I think is really good.
"As soon as I came in, it was straight into tackles, like they don't care how old you are, which, again, I think is really good. As soon as I went down, which was a foul but they don't give fouls much [in training] and the coaches just tell you to get on with it. And then Cunha said to me, as soon as I got fouled, 'next time, I do not want to hear you at all. I want you to get up and carry on'. And you know what? Next time I got fouled, I got up straight away and the ball just came to me straight back. And then I scored! He said 'see, this is exactly what I mean'.
"Then, after that, he was just like talking to me and saying 'as long as you listen and as long as you [learn]'. He said 'if I didn't like you, I wouldn't have helped you'. So I think Cunha, I've had a really good connection with him. He's a really good guy."
