When Manchester United were in transition back in 1991-92 season, Sir Alex Ferguson raised a group of boys who would rise up to the occasion to ultimately deliver an unprecedented amount of European and English success over the next two decades. They were also known as ‘Fergie’s Fledglings’; also better known as the Class of ’92.
United had five promising youngsters out on loan last season with Danny Welbeck and Tom Cleverley both playing in the Premiership with Sunderland and Wigan Athletic first teams respectively. Kiko Macheda spent half a season relatively struggling in Sampdoria for first team action while Mame Biram Diouf did reasonably well as a substitute for Blackburn Rovers and Ritchie De laet impressing at Portsmouth.
In a world of inflated price tags and weeks spent on negotiations, money spent is not a guarantee. So United may want to take the plunge into their own roster and give it a go, saving all the contract heckling. With Paul Scholes, Gary Neville and Van Der Sar all retiring last season and Ryan Giggs looking certain to play his last this year, Ferguson has got it right once again. He’s covered vacant positions but still misses out on a playmaker. Perhaps they ought to give one of their younger investments a chance to shine on the big stage.
Cue Tom Cleverley. Having spent last season at Wigan Athletic, this boy has got invaluable experience of what it is like to fight and stay up in the Premiership and in the Championship with Watford two seasons ago. He is highly regarded within the club and at twenty years of age, he is a gamble worth taking. He looked sharp in pre-season, determined to win that midfield berth and looks to be a contender to play alongside Michael Carrick.
Mame Biram Diouf, 23, spent all of last season at Blackburn largely as a substitute with six goals to his name. Tall, quick and well built, he has the attributes required to be a Premier League striker except for his experience. It looks less likely that he will be breaking into the first team given the performances of Chicharito last season. He will not only be competing with Welbeck but also with Federico Macheda who is already a Stretford End favourite having made his mark two seasons ago in a thrilling 3-2 victory over Aston Villa. Diouf looks set to be a substitute again at Old Trafford unless he reckons that another loan spell will do him a lot of good, which may make him another contender in Ferguson’s eyes for next year but probably not at the moment.
After a memorable injury time strike against Aston Villa nearly two years ago, it is unimaginable that this young 19-year-old Italian hasn’t made the first team for quite some time now. He also endured a miserable loan spell at Sampdoria between January and May – the time that he spent there. A talented boy and evidently, made for the big occasion, being a lethal striker of the ball and scoring when it matters most are his strongest traits. Having said that, he returns to his parent club with optimism, facing stern competition in United’s striking ranks since the Old Trafford outfit has six other forwards to choose from.
While the four of these young talents look likely to stay back at United, defender De laet has already chosen to represent Norwich City who will play in the Premier League this. It is a wise decision on his part to move away temporarily where he will get first team action in the world’s most watched league. Meanwhile, United already have a defense with the Da Silva twins, Phil Jones and Chris Smalling staking a claim amidst a wealth of experienced players in Rio, Vidic and Evra.
These young footballers have their work cut out for them but the positives they carry with them is that they look hungry and determined to succeed. The future of Manchester United is here and now.
While there may be doubters and skeptics, there are also fans of old who have seen the promise of those talented fledglings before. This may well be the case with Cleverley, Welbeck and Macheda. For long, United’s war cry has been ‘Believe’ and it is something that has seen them produce glorious moments in the past. The same should be applied to the future stars of Manchester United, isn’t it?
United had five promising youngsters out on loan last season with Danny Welbeck and Tom Cleverley both playing in the Premiership with Sunderland and Wigan Athletic first teams respectively. Kiko Macheda spent half a season relatively struggling in Sampdoria for first team action while Mame Biram Diouf did reasonably well as a substitute for Blackburn Rovers and Ritchie De laet impressing at Portsmouth.
In a world of inflated price tags and weeks spent on negotiations, money spent is not a guarantee. So United may want to take the plunge into their own roster and give it a go, saving all the contract heckling. With Paul Scholes, Gary Neville and Van Der Sar all retiring last season and Ryan Giggs looking certain to play his last this year, Ferguson has got it right once again. He’s covered vacant positions but still misses out on a playmaker. Perhaps they ought to give one of their younger investments a chance to shine on the big stage.
Cue Tom Cleverley. Having spent last season at Wigan Athletic, this boy has got invaluable experience of what it is like to fight and stay up in the Premiership and in the Championship with Watford two seasons ago. He is highly regarded within the club and at twenty years of age, he is a gamble worth taking. He looked sharp in pre-season, determined to win that midfield berth and looks to be a contender to play alongside Michael Carrick.
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| Cleverley played in, Welbeck! |
Danny Welbeck scored six times for Sunderland in 26 appearances and looked menacing with Asmoah Gyan as his co-striker. Though blighted by injury throughout most of the second half of last season, he did more than enough to convince both Steve Bruce and Sir Alex Ferguson that he is one for the future. Sunderland tried to lure him into staying back for one more year by giving him regular football whereas United firmly said no. It looks likely that Welbeck will have a part to play in United’s push for more silverware this season. Like Cleverley, Welbeck has stated that he sees his future at Manchester United and is determined to fulfill is potential and dreams.
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| Should I stay or should I go? |
Mame Biram Diouf, 23, spent all of last season at Blackburn largely as a substitute with six goals to his name. Tall, quick and well built, he has the attributes required to be a Premier League striker except for his experience. It looks less likely that he will be breaking into the first team given the performances of Chicharito last season. He will not only be competing with Welbeck but also with Federico Macheda who is already a Stretford End favourite having made his mark two seasons ago in a thrilling 3-2 victory over Aston Villa. Diouf looks set to be a substitute again at Old Trafford unless he reckons that another loan spell will do him a lot of good, which may make him another contender in Ferguson’s eyes for next year but probably not at the moment.
After a memorable injury time strike against Aston Villa nearly two years ago, it is unimaginable that this young 19-year-old Italian hasn’t made the first team for quite some time now. He also endured a miserable loan spell at Sampdoria between January and May – the time that he spent there. A talented boy and evidently, made for the big occasion, being a lethal striker of the ball and scoring when it matters most are his strongest traits. Having said that, he returns to his parent club with optimism, facing stern competition in United’s striking ranks since the Old Trafford outfit has six other forwards to choose from.
While the four of these young talents look likely to stay back at United, defender De laet has already chosen to represent Norwich City who will play in the Premier League this. It is a wise decision on his part to move away temporarily where he will get first team action in the world’s most watched league. Meanwhile, United already have a defense with the Da Silva twins, Phil Jones and Chris Smalling staking a claim amidst a wealth of experienced players in Rio, Vidic and Evra.
These young footballers have their work cut out for them but the positives they carry with them is that they look hungry and determined to succeed. The future of Manchester United is here and now.
While there may be doubters and skeptics, there are also fans of old who have seen the promise of those talented fledglings before. This may well be the case with Cleverley, Welbeck and Macheda. For long, United’s war cry has been ‘Believe’ and it is something that has seen them produce glorious moments in the past. The same should be applied to the future stars of Manchester United, isn’t it?
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