MICHAEL CARRICK BRINGS BACK "THE UNITED WAY" BY SCOUTING ACADEMY STARS AT CARRINGTON
Michael Carrick ends Ruben Amorim’s era of academy neglect. See which youth stars impressed the interim boss at Man Utd
Ruben Amorim liked to do things his own way at Manchester United, and honestly, that meant skipping some of the easy wins. Take the academy games, for example. You’d think showing up to support the young players would be a no-brainer, but Amorim barely bothered. He wandered over to glance at an academy match at Carrington once, but that was about it. In a year and a half, he never really took the time to watch the youth teams play.
Then Michael Carrick arrives as interim boss, and within a week, he’s sitting at an Under-21 match. Not alone, either—he’s got Steve Holland, Jonathan Woodgate, and Travis Binnion with him. Jason Wilcox, the club’s director of football, and Stephen Torpey, who runs the academy, were there too. Darren Fletcher showed up as well, now back to managing the Under-18s after his brief spell as caretaker.
Maybe it sounds like a small thing—coaches watching a youth match—, but it means a lot. It’s a clear signal to the academy players: you matter. There’s a path for you here. Carrick even planned to talk with the Under-21s after their game against Sporting Lisbon. It’s a classy move, and it’s not something they got from Amorim. Some of the academy kids felt let down by Amorim’s comments in the press, but Carrick’s already working to lift them in his first week.
Fletcher, for his part, defended the academy passionately at a recent press conference, and there’s every reason to think Carrick will keep that going—even if he’s only guaranteed the job until the end of the season. Carrick knows what this club is about. He played 464 times for United and said that the best teams here always had homegrown players. A lot of people felt Amorim just didn’t understand that.
Amorim didn’t help himself, either, when he publicly questioned Harry Amass’s loan in the Championship, pointed out Chido Obi wasn’t starting every U21 match, or randomly brought up Toby Collyer. With Carrick, you’re not going to get headlines like that. He’s steady.
Carrick’s first taste of academy football at Leigh Sports Village turned out to be a wild ride. James Scanlon scored twice in the first half, putting United up 2-1 against Sporting. At halftime, Woodgate was seen pointing at the team sheet—probably talking about Scanlon, who looked a class above. Scanlon, by the way, has already played senior internationals for Gibraltar, thanks to his mum, and he’s clearly outgrown academy football. He sealed his hat-trick with a sharp finish in the second half. Now, with Torpey handling loans after Evans stepped down, Scanlon needs a move—ideally before January is over.
Tyler Fredricson captained the team that night. A few days before, he’d been in the directors’ box for the Manchester derby, sitting next to Joshua Zirkzee and Matthijs de Ligt. Fredricson started against Sporting, but since being subbed off early against Grimsby Town in August, he’s only played two first-team minutes. He’s another one who would benefit from a loan to get some real game time.
Carrick also got his first look at the Fletcher twins in action. Jack Fletcher has come off the bench in Premier League games against Aston Villa, Newcastle, and Wolves in December. That match against Sporting was another chance to impress now that Carrick’s in charge. Tyler Fletcher has made three matchday squads in the Premier League but hasn’t debuted yet. Watching his brother get minutes will only make him hungrier.
With just 16 league games left this season and most of the senior squad fit, it’ll be interesting to see how much Carrick leans on academy players. Only the very best are likely to get chances. Right now, Shea Lacey looks the favourite to stick around the senior group. He wasn’t involved against Sporting because he’d been training with the first team, and his recent cameos have turned heads.
United edged out Sporting 3-2 in the end, but they’ll have to wait to see if they make the knockout rounds of the Premier League International Cup. At least Carrick saw a five-goal thriller and Scanlon’s hat-trick on his first night watching the academy—pretty good start.
INSIDE SENNE LAMMENS’ BLUEPRINT FOR MAN UNITED’S MASSIVE 2026 SUMMER TRANSFER OVERHAUL
"We want to be stronger." Read Senne Lammens' honest assessment of Manchester United’s squad needs after the Sunderland draw.
Senne Lammens isn’t hiding from the truth; he knows Manchester United have to beef up their squad this summer if they want to handle both the Premier League and Champions League next season.
Saturday’s 0-0 draw at Sunderland showed just how thin United are right now. Casemiro, Benjamin Sesko, and Manuel Ugarte all sat out with injuries, and you could feel their absence on the pitch.
It’s been a weird season for United. They played just 40 games, the fewest in over a century, because they were eliminated from Europe and both domestic cups so early. But now they’re back in the Champions League, and Lammens realises the team has to get deeper if they want to compete seriously.
“Yeah, definitely. This league’s tough, and next year’s schedule is going to be insane,” the goalkeeper said. “You want to have enough reliable players, people who can step up whenever they’re needed.”
Lammens made it clear that United must invest in new signings during the summer window. He’s not saying the squad lacks quality now, but he knows things will get tougher. “Honestly, I think we’ve got a lot of talent this year,” he said. “But next season’s going to ask a lot more from us, and you need to be ready for injuries and everything that can come with a busy year like today, when we missed a few regular starters. Being able to call on others to jump in really matters.”
He wants a strong, well-rounded group ready for the challenges ahead. “We’re already building towards that, but we want to be even stronger for next season.”
Some people wondered if United relaxed after they clinched their Champions League spot by beating Liverpool last weekend. Lammens brushed that idea off. He said head coach Michael Carrick was all over them, reminding everyone to finish the season on a high.
“I don’t think so, not for me at least,” Lammens said. “The manager made it clear that these last games are important. We want as many points as we can get and to finish as high as possible. How you end the season carries over. It’s your launchpad for next year. We want to keep the momentum going.”
He didn’t want to hear any excuses. “Honestly, if we’d played at Sunderland a few weeks ago before securing the Champions League, it still would’ve been tough. That wasn’t in our minds.”
Carrick echoed those thoughts after the match. He sounded almost annoyed when asked if the players were mentally on holiday already.
“I get almost offended by that,” he said. “The way the players prepared and battled out there, it’s clear they’re still focused. If we’d been off it, we’d have lost. Sunderland pushed us hard at times.”
He thinks the pride and responsibility of playing for Manchester United is all the motivation the team needs. “That’s what keeps us sharp, knowing we represent something big. That doesn’t guarantee we’ll always play brilliantly, but it’s enough to fight through tough days.”
MANCHESTER UNITED HOLD ADVANCED NEGOTIATIONS FOR RECORD-BREAKING £18M BETWAY SPONSORSHIP
Despite the upcoming front-of-shirt gambling ban, explore how Man United’s Betway deal targets training apparel at Carrington.
Manchester United are currently discussing a potential sponsorship deal with Betway, reportedly worth up to £18 million. This comes despite the Premier League having banned betting companies from featuring as main shirt sponsors starting from the 2026-27 season.
Back in 2023, Premier League clubs collectively agreed to remove gambling logos from the front of their shirts. From that point, no top-flight team will carry betting advertisements on their kits during matches. But this new deal would see Betway appear on United’s training gear, not their matchday shirts.
According to reports from the MEN, talks have progressed significantly. If an agreement were reached, the Betway logo would be quite visible on the training apparel worn by players at Carrington, United’s training ground. That means fans would regularly see the branding in video footage and photos taken during training sessions.
Previously, United’s training kits featured Tezos, a blockchain company, until that partnership ended in June 2025. Betway has its own history with English football; they’ve been shirt sponsors for West Ham United and maintain global gambling partnerships with several Premier League clubs, including Manchester City, Arsenal, and Brighton & Hove Albion.
The financial terms on the table for this Betway deal would be substantially close to £18 million, putting it on a similar scale to Bayern Munich’s partnership with Allianz, which includes stadium naming rights. This is quite a significant figure for a single training kit sponsor.
This season, United have gone without a sponsor on their training gear. After the Tezos contract expired, the club chose not to rush into a new agreement. They wanted to carefully evaluate potential partners, both from a financial standpoint and in terms of brand alignment.
There were even conversations with the African division of the Six Rivers Foundation, a conservation project in which United minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has invested. However, those discussions didn’t lead to a deal.
When majority owners Joel and Avram Glazer visited Carrington earlier this year, commercial revenue and sponsorship opportunities were among the key topics addressed. The club has also brought in marketing agency Two Circles, where ex-United sales manager Leo Thompson works, to help find a new sleeve sponsor, given that the current contract with DXC ends this summer.
Securing Champions League qualification for next season under Michael Carrick’s leadership has somewhat eased the process. United guaranteed their place in Europe’s top competition after a 3-2 victory over Liverpool at Old Trafford, which should make the club more attractive to potential commercial partners.
