Former Manchester United midfielder Tom Cleverley has a sense of unfinished business at the club where he rose through the youth ranks.
Cleverley navigated his way up the levels in United’s Academy before playing for the senior side, making his debut in the 2011 Community Shield, and most notably playing a role in our 2012/13 Premier League-winning term.
Tom spent just one full season after that in the Reds’ set-up, joining Aston Villa on loan for the 2014/15 campaign, prior to permanently departing Old Trafford for Everton at the end of that season.
Speaking during his guest appearance on the new episode of the UTD Podcast, which you can listen to in full via the United App here, the now-33-year-old explains he never properly said his goodbyes at the club.
“The reason being, at Villa we got to the FA Cup final which was the last game of the season,”he began, speaking to co-hosts David May, Helen Evans and Sam Homewood.
“So, I remember, I think I might have gone away with England, then got married and just didn’t get round to going back to Carrington and saying all my goodbyes.
“So yeah, it wasn’t like the fairy-tale ending to the dream story I had, or the dream journey.
“But like I said, I’d love to come back to the club in some capacity in the future and yeah, I really feel like my journey’s not ended there.”
The midfielder, who now captains Championship side Watford, has made no secret about his desire to go into coaching after his playing days are over.
Along with his boyhood club Bradford City, Cleverley said United are the other team that he'd be honoured to represent in his future chapter.
“I understand that like as a player, you’ve got to earn your stripes. Like I said, I’m passionate about helping our [Watford’s] young players in the squad now as club captain and that won’t change from when I retire to being a coach.
“So, whether it’s [Under-]18s or 23s, we might be somewhere else to start with, but they are my two clubs, Bradford and Man United, I’d love to represent both of them.”
While Cleverley is currently at Watford, a legacy of his playing days lives on at United, as he features in a mural on the side of the Academy building at Carrington.
The display features a line of Reds, past and present, that have come through the youth ranks at the club.
“Fletch [Darren Fletcher] sent me a picture the other day. To see me, Welbs [Danny Welbeck], Fletch on there, honestly, [it makes me feel] really proud. Really, really proud.
“I sent it straight to my mum because the amount of trips she did from Bradford to Manchester and then to see me on the side of the building, I thought, that’s nice. So, [it is] a bit of a reward for her.”
During his UTD Podcast appearance, Tom explained how he’s keeping an eye on things at the club from afar, which includes going to watch Erik ten Hag’s side in person, earlier this year.
“I even went to the Palace game the other week, just as a supporter and just enjoying the football they’re [United] playing at the minute.
“Enjoying the players they’ve got and the manager and yeah, I wanted to see it.”
You can see Tom Cleverley’s full UTD Podcast episode here.