U18s preview: Arsenal v United

On Friday, our talented Under-18s side — reigning English champions — continue writing their own chapter in the wonderful tale of United in the Youth Cup. With three five-goal wins, confidence is high for our first trip to north London in this prestigious competition since a 2007 semi-final starring Danny Welbeck and Tom Cleverley.

“This is an amazing opportunity,” Nick Cox, Director of Academy, explained to UR.

“We’ve had regular opportunities in recent years to play at Old Trafford and it’s of great importance for our boys to become familiar with our own ground. Practising in an arena where you’ll play games if you reach our first team is within our control and we do that regularly.

“We don’t quite as frequently get the opportunity to play in Premier League stadiums away from home. We’ve had some lovely experiences in the National League Cup and EFL Trophy, playing at first-team stadiums, and that’s great, but to play at another Premier League is an exciting one and a development opportunity.

“It’s always important to play in a stadium where you’re the away team and the crowd are going to be against you and while we have great away followings, for your own support to be outnumbered by the home fans, to play in arena you’re unfamiliar with that brings some nerves.

“And naturally in terms of the actual match itself, we’re always keen to make sure our boys go up against the best players around and Arsenal have a wonderful youth system and develop great players so it’s great for our boys to have an opportunity to go up against a really good team.

“We also really like the jeopardy that the competitions we enter facilitate and the jeopardy of an away Youth Cup quarter-final is really exciting one. We hope we’ll overcome that challenge, but ultimately, whatever way it goes, there’s an experience to be had that all these young players will add to their armoury, in terms of what they learn on the night and how they’ll use that in their careers moving forward.”

THE STORY SO FAR

ROUND THREE: 5-1 v COVENTRY CITY (Biancheri 3, Obi 2) – 18 December

Seeking to right the wrong of both last season’s early exit and the previous week’s UEFA Youth League defeat, United wasted little time by scoring three goals in the opening 13 minutes.

“It’s always nice to get a dominant performance in the first game,” reviewed lead coach Adam Lawrence.

“The boys attacked them in a variety of ways. Once we got that lead, it was about the good habits, being professional in the right moments. We did that, killed the game off and were comfortable.”

ROUND FOUR: 5-2 v PRESTON NORTH END (J. Fletcher, Munro, Obi 2, Ibragimov) – 17 January

Another fast start at Leigh established a four-goal half-time lead against PNE, who had put four past Liverpool in the previous round. United overcame the visitors’ second-half resurgence to triumph.

“The boys got into a rhythm well,” Lawrence said.

“With a four-goal half-time lead you want to maintain that, but there’s some lessons for our lads because Preston did well. They tested us.”

ROUND FIVE: 5-1 v CHELSEA (Obi 3, Scanlon 2) – 12 February 

After going behind, United showed grit, composure and then real quality to establish a 3-1 half-time lead and prove themselves against the toughest opposition yet. James Scanlon scored two and Chido Obi a clinical hat-trick in an impressive, hard-working team performance that left little doubt as to United’s potential for further Youth Cup success.

“It was a real team effort,” reviews Lawrence.

“But also a really good night for the goalscorers. Obviously Chido is a natural goalscorer, but I was really pleased with his link-up play – not just stretching and running in behind but recognising when to show into feet,  how to use his body to shield the ball and when to bring others into play. And it was nice for Scanners because he got the rewards for the runs he was making.”

HOW TO WATCH AND FOLLOW

With apologies to MUTV subscribers, we are unable to show Friday's game due to FA regulations. Arsenal, as the home team, are permitted to do so, and the FA will stream the game on their YouTube channel.

Instead, we will offer updates, interviews, highlights and reaction from the Emirates Stadium.

Fans wishing to attend the game are encouraged to do so and can buy their tickets from Arsenal's website, here.

ARSENAL’S JOURNEY

Friday’s opponents have enjoyed a rockier route to the quarter-final. Two goals from the prolific Dan Casey helped them survive a third-round scare against non-league Hertford Town. Andre Harriman-Annous scored one of the others in a 4-3 win and then netted in the subsequent 3-3 draw v QPR, in which 15-year-old Max Dowman – who has made headlines for training with the first team – also netted. Arsenal won 4-3 on penalties, with key saves from Jack Porter, who made a senior debut in the Carabao Cup last autumn. Schoolboy Dowman netted again in round five in a calmer performance, with Harriman-Anous scoring in a third consecutive game in a 2-1 win.

Arsenal are seven-time Youth Cup winners (1966, 1971, 1988, 1994, 2000, 2001 and 2009) and most recently reached the final in 2023 when a Jack Wilshere-managed side were beaten 5-1 by West Ham at the Emirates Stadium.

OUR LAST YOUTH CUP GAME AT THE EMIRATES

A then-record crowd of 38,187 watched our last FA Youth Cup game at the Emirates Stadium, in 2007. It was a meeting between two talented sides whose players were aiming to progress into their title-challenging — or title-winning, in United’s case — senior squads. And the Arsene Wenger-Sir Alex Ferguson rivalry impacted this game, too. Ahead of the semi-final first leg, Sir Alex got stuck in.

"The young players at Arsenal get credit for being the best in the land but I believe they're not as good as our young players," he said.

In north London, Kieran Gibbs scored the game’s only goal to give Arsenal an advantage to take to Old Trafford where an epic followed. Danny Welbeck proved the hero in a 4-2 extra-time victory. Welbeck and team-mate Tom Cleverley later played 221 times for United between them. Welbeck, of course, remains a regular Premier League starter, at Brighton, while Cleverley is enjoying his first managerial job at Watford.

Others in United’s squad that day include Ben Amos (295 Football League appearances), James Chester (424 EFL appearances, 35 Wales caps), Craig Cathcart (390 EFL appearances, 61 Northern Ireland caps) and Danny Drinkwater (314 EFL apps, 3 England caps).

This article originally appeared in United Review. Subscribe to our beloved matchday programme here.