United's youngsters at the Aon Training Complex.

Ole considers next moves for United youngsters

Wednesday 15 May 2019 09:00

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will carefully plot the future of the club's young players during the close season.

Some members of the Under-23s squad may be ready for loan moves away from Old Trafford but there is always the possibility that they can sufficiently impress the boss to earn a crack in the senior team.

With Ole already suggesting he could field a number of our top prospects in the Europa League campaign, much discussion will take place over the best course of action and which plan to follow for each individual's personal development.

United's young players regularly train alongside the first-teamers.

Tahith Chong, James Garner and Mason Greenwood all made their senior debuts under Solskjaer, while Brandon Williams was part of the squad that travelled to France to take on Paris Saint-Germain.

Angel Gomes came off the bench in the final game of the campaign against Cardiff City and there is a clear feeling that some of our homegrown talents are pushing for a place in Ole's 2019/20 squad. Possible clues are likely to be offered in this respect when the pre-season tour party is finalised after the players return to the Aon Training Complex in the first week of July.

When asked by MUTV's Helen Evans about loan spells for the youngsters, Ole replied: "I have to say it’s nice for them to get a full season somewhere and play but, then again, maybe the best place to be is here, training with the best players in the world. 

"In this environment, we’ve got a history of making them [young players] the best but we’ve got loads of good experiences of players being out for a year and coming back as men.

"Let’s see what we decide with these boys but I can see most staying here and getting their chances next year."

Angel Gomes and Tahith Chong got some game time in the final matches of the season.

Speaking as part of a wide-ranging interview, which is being serialised in three parts in full only in our official app, the boss also stressed that he wants to find time to keep tabs on all the Academy players, to enable a broad overview of what we have coming through the ranks.

He also revealed what he wants to see from the first-year scholars, in terms of their decision making and team ethic.

"I love watching the younger age groups," he said. "I love to see the kids expressing themselves. I want to see it at Old Trafford when they get there, to see who expresses themselves in the right way. Not showboating. It’s a fine balance when you’re a young kid, you know.

"It’s not down to me to base my judgement on a couple of games but sometimes if you’re 5-0 up or 1-0 down, I want to see them do the same thing - the right thing. It’s not about them but the right thing for the team. If you’ve got it at 16 or 17, you will have it when you get into the first team."

The manager attends matches at various levels within the club.

It will be interesting to see which Academy graduates can force their way into the manager's plans. Ole has already namechecked Ethan Laird during a press conference and a number of players have been pictured training with the first team as the integration process is carefully planned over a sustained period of time. Meanwhile, Axel Tuanzebe looks set to return from a successful loan spell at Aston Villa and fight for a place by going on tour.

The plans for each individual's future will become clearer as the pre-season period unfolds from 1 July.

The second part of Ole's end-of-season interview can be viewed exclusively in our official app, which you can download here.

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