4000 consecutive first team matches with homegrown player(s) in the squad | 4284 as of 15 Dec 2024

top1whoisman

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First of all, I would like to give a huge credit to club historian Tony aka @Mr. MUJAC for keeping the whole world updated about this as well as loads of other United academy related matters.



So the Sunday's match against Everton will be the club's 4000th consecutive match with at least one academy product in the matchday squad! It runs all the way back to 1937. And I think it's fitting to start the thread with Tony's interview from the official website.

//

How did you uncover the statistic around the Fulham game in October 1937, which is when the run of homegrown players in the first-team squad began?

While we were writing the book, we kept uncovering statistics like, for example, in 1957, 10 players from the youth system played in a first-team game and the 11th, Colin Webster, came to us at 18 so isn’t officially credited as a youth player. I started looking back game-by-game through each season, and worked out that, hang on, we’ve had a youth player in every single game here. I went back as far as I could go and then realised that the game before Fulham, which was against Sheffield Wednesday, there wasn’t a player that hadn’t come through our youth system. Tom Manley and Jackie Wassell at the time were the two players who had first come through our youth system, so when they were missing from that line-up, I knew the run started with that Fulham game.

How did you get to the number which is approaching 4,000 games?

The hard bit was starting. Once that’s done, all you do is get your yearbooks out and count up the matches from that first game, then look at the line-ups plus subs, and make sure there was a youth-team player in it. There are a few interesting elements to it – for whatever reason, some United statistical records don’t include matches like the Screensport Super Cup (a tournament in which United played four games in the late 1980s). I’ve spoken to the FA on this, and that tournament was a Football League-affiliated competition. The other tournament is the Anglo-Italian Cup – that was a competition affiliated by the FA, the Football League and the Italian FA. I spoke to other teams involved, like Newcastle United, Swindon Town and others, and they all include those matches in their records. There was another tournament organised by the Football League called the Centenary Tournament which we took part in. Some people include those games and some don’t, but I’ve included them in the run as they are official senior games according to the FA.

The three-part criteria to define what constitutes a homegrown player – have to have signed before the age of 18, played at a junior level below the first team at United and not to have played for another team at senior level – provides a fair bit of clarity…

Yes, I think you just need to be fair and reasonable with the criteria and what’s important is being able to employ the same criteria across the 1950s, the ‘60s, the ‘70s and the ‘80s, and also the 2020s. If someone says that Paul Pogba isn’t a homegrown player because we signed him from France, I would say, well hang on a second, he’s just like George Best. He came at roughly the same age, he played for two years in the youth teams, so how is George Best or Bobby Charlton a youth player and this guy isn’t? All that’s happened is the breeding ground for these players has changed, and rather than playing local youth football, they’re playing in academies. So, if we keep the criteria simple but hard, and apply it consistently, then it’s fairly straightforward.

//

United website is filled with articles and interviews related to this unbelievable record, I'll add more...
 
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Manchester United’s game against Everton marks the 4,000th consecutive match in all competitions, where the club has had a homegrown player in the matchday squad.

The run started all the way back in 1937, the year of King George VI’s coronation, when Tom Manley and Jack Wassall were selected for the away game at Fulham.

Manley was initially a left half-back, who joined from Northwich Victoria at the age of 18, seven years earlier. A physical presence, weighing around 13 stone, he was versatile and had leadership qualities.

He joined Brentford after a lengthy pursuit by the Bees but the War interrupted his career just when he was pushing for an England cap. He was stationed in Egypt and, in 1940, he was training as an Army PE instructor in Manchester.

Wassall was an inside-right who cost £350 from Wellington Town in 1935 and took his chance after an injury to Smith. His brother Bill played for Shrewsbury Town.

Johnny Carey and Stan Pearson worked their way into the line-up that season and would become stalwarts. Striker Jimmy Hanlon impressed with the Reserves to gain promotion to the side in 1938, only for the Second World War to understandably interrupt football in England the following year.

In the first game following the outbreak of peace, Carey, Pearson and Hanlon were all in the side against Grimsby Town, the first named by boss Matt Busby. The new manager’s commitment to youth would fuel the continuation of the run, as he began to nurture his ‘Babes’ and create a blueprint for the future.

Charlie Mitten, John Aston and Johnny Morris became influential performers and helped the club lift the FA Cup in 1948. The following decade would usher in the new wave of Babes from the successful teams that won the FA Youth Cup in the first five years of its existence.

Bobby Charlton made his debut in 1956 but the Munich Air Disaster, two years later, would devastate the club. Seven of the eight players who lost their lives were homegrown talents with the world at their feet. The rebuilding would still lean heavily on the youth system, with survivors Bill Foulkes and Charlton becoming hugely influential, ably supported by a certain young Northern Irishman, in George Best, who quickly made his mark.

The league title was secured in 1965, with Nobby Stiles and David Sadler also making an impression, before the crowning glory at Wembley in 1968, when Benfica were defeated 4-1, after extra time, in the European Cup final. United became the first English team to lift the trophy and the scorers Charlton (2), Best and, on his 19th birthday, Brian Kidd, were all youth-team products.

Another Belfast boy, Sammy McIlroy, burst through to become a regular in the 1970s, as Best and Charlton departed the scene. Dependable full-back Arthur Albiston, like McIlroy, made his debut in the Manchester derby and never looked back and this pair racked up the appearances. Brian Greenhoff and Jimmy Nicholl also started the one trophy win in the decade, the 1977 FA Cup final against Liverpool, with David McCreery coming off the bench.

In the 1980s, we welcomed Norman Whiteside and Mark Hughes off the production line, two powerhouses who became firm crowd favourites under Ron Atkinson. The two combined for Whiteside to curl the 1985 FA Cup final winner against Everton, while Hughes was always the man for the big occasion. Alex Ferguson’s arrival as manager, in 1986, would only help strengthen the connection with our youth system and keeper Gary Walsh was his first homegrown debutant in only his sixth match in charge.

A sprinkling of so-called ‘Fergie Fledglings’ helped keep the run going and Hyde-born Lee Martin scored the winning goal in the 1990 FA Cup final replay against Crystal Palace, the first piece of silverware in Ferguson’s incredible reign. The following year, Ryan Giggs made his debut and would go on to become our record appearance maker.

The glory years always featured youth representation, with the manager famously turning to his ‘kids’ when coach Eric Harrison’s Class of 92 emerged to offer him options such as Paul Scholes, David Beckham, Gary Neville and Nicky Butt. The century drew to a close with the Treble victory in 1999, with four of this famous batch in the line-up for the Champions League success against Bayern Munich.

Neville’s brother Phil started to make an impression as well as United kept winning, and continued to rely on this core of the famous youth team. Darren Fletcher and John O’Shea emerged as valuable, and versatile, additions to the squad. Another Champions League victory was enjoyed in 2008, with Wes Brown starting the final against Chelsea, along with Giggs and Scholes. In the following season, Federico Macheda marked his debut as a 17-year-old with a crucial late winner against Aston Villa to help fend off Liverpool in the title race.

Sir Alex was happy to introduce more youngsters into the fold as his glorious spell in charge continued, always keeping with the best traditions of the club. Jonny Evans and Danny Welbeck were just two of them, while the FA Youth Cup-winning team of 2011 included Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard, who ended up becoming important contributors following the Scot’s retirement. Lingard volleyed in the FA Cup winner over Crystal Palace in Louis van Gaal’s final match in charge.

By then, Marcus Rashford has also burst onto the scene under the Dutchman, scoring twice on his debut against Midtjylland and going from strength to strength. However, there were a couple of occasions in the 2015/16 campaign when we had to rely on unused substitutes to maintain the record, including in the opening fixture against Tottenham at Old Trafford (Sam Johnstone, Paddy McNair and Andreas Pereira were on the bench).

Pogba returned to the club from Juventus and found the net in the Europa League final triumph over Ajax during Jose Mourinho’s tenure and the chain has remained unbroken, with Scott McTominay also becoming a role model for the entire Academy under the Portuguese manager.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is showing signs that he will also invest his faith heavily in youth, dishing out a record-breaking six debuts in the Europa League tie in Kazakhstan against Astana last month. He has pledged that the run will certainly continue under his watch as the influence of the Academy on the first team grows and grows.
 
This is something that has never had the recognition it deserves

There's not a club in the world that can rival it is there?
 
This is truly amazing, and something the club is rightfully very proud of. I hope we never lose this identity.
 
It is incredible
 
Paul Pogba says it's “unbelievable” that Manchester United have had a homegrown player in every matchday squad since 1937 and the midfielder admits he is proud to be part of such a phenomenal record.

Pogba spoke to MUTV's Stewart Gardner in an exclusive interview this week and reflected on his time coming up through United's youth ranks after he arrived at the club in 2009.

The World Cup winner praised the club's ethos and culture of developing young talent and he believes the Reds' current crop have a great opportunity to cement their place in United's history.

Paul, this weekend, we celebrate the 4,000th consecutive match of there being a youth-team graduate in a first-team matchday squad going back to 1937 – can you believe that record?

“Where was I then [in 1937]?! [Laughs] It’s unbelievable and it shows the identity of this club and the culture of this club. We’ve always talked about youth players coming into the first team and it’s just carried on. It’s something that is in this club, it’s incredible it’s been happening since 1937. You want to carry this on for the young players and the next generation to go and play in the first team.”

When you joined Academy 10 years ago as a 16-year-old, what were your impressions of it when you first arrived?

“When I arrived here, everything felt big! The training ground was big, all the players were big, the pitch was big, everything was big and I had my eyes open the whole time. Then I put the shirt on for the first time and I said: ‘Wow, I came to Manchester United’, I just couldn’t believe it. When I started training with the first team, I was 17, and I remember Vida [Nemanja Vidic] was there and Ji-sung Park and I touched Vida and I saw how tough and how strong he was! I knew then I had to work hard to get into the first team. It was a really great experience as a young kid to come here at 16 and see everything so big, and see all these top players and a top manager. To be there, having them sat next to us around the training ground, was a dream come true.”

How did the club help you when you came over? Presumably, you didn’t speak much English and it must have been hard to move to a new country initially?

“Yes it was. I couldn’t speak much English but I went to school here so it helped me a lot. Just talking with the guys in the dressing room helped me, that’s when you learn the most, I think. Obviously, you learn the naughty words first [laughs] and all the players really helped me. I remember I was with Joshua King a lot and he helped me improve my English, also Ryan Tunnicliffe and Jesse [Lingard] as well, although I couldn’t understand Jesse’s English and I still don’t! [Laughs] He speaks so fast with a Mancunian accent and I have to try to figure out what he’s saying! He was one who helped me a lot but everyone did.”

Which coaches stand out as being very important to you in those early days?

“I was with Jim Ryan and Paul McGuinness, they helped me a lot, Warren Joyce, as well, after that. For a French guy coming here at 16 to understand another culture and another way of playing football, you needed a bit of time to adapt and they all really helped me, as did the players. It felt great to be trained by those people and I think the last time we won the Youth Cup was under Paul and Jim, they helped us improve a lot.”

When you first come here do you get taught about the history of the club?

“Yes. Jim Ryan talked to me a lot about that. He used to play for United and he used to tell me: ‘At this club, young players have a chance to get into the first team’. He said that was the identity of the club. He talked about training hard, passing the ball, pass and run, all this stuff… Pat [Evra] was here too, Rio [Ferdinand] as well and even Berba [Dimitar Berbatov] talked to me a lot about it all. They help you understand how it is here, Pat talked to me a lot because he’s French. Obviously the boss, Sir Alex Ferguson, talked to me as well and he came to see us as well when we were playing in the Reserves or the FA Youth Cup. He used to give us messages and he’d also take us [on trips] for cup games. It shows the history this club has with involving young players and how it’s always been like that.”

Winning the Youth Cup was a really big deal wasn’t it - in 2011 against Sheffield United…

“Harry [Maguire] was there [for Sheffield United]! We had a good team and a lot of players who played in the first team or went to other clubs. Will Keane played in the first team then he went to Hull, Mike Keane is at Everton, Jesse, myself and Sam Johnstone, Tyler Blackett, Rav [Ravel Morrison], Larnell [Cole], Ryan Tunnicliffe, they’re still playing… we had a really decent team.”

How important do you think your grounding and upbringing in the Academy has been to your development in becoming the sort of the player that you are now?

“From the start, like I said, when I arrived here, they show you the way of playing. All the coaches show you how to prepare yourself to get into the first team. Warren Joyce used to train us very hard to be ready for the first team. The first team always used to play with 4-4-2, so we used to do the same meaning when you got the chance to be with the first team you could play and not be lost on the pitch.”

Ole clearly has a lot of faith in young players – how important is it that the pathway is there for players to continue to come up through the Academy into the first team?

“I’ve said to a lot of the young players who have been with the first team: ‘Guys, you don’t know how lucky you are’. Unfortunately for us, we’ve had a lot of injured players and it’s therefore a big chance for the young players to be involved with the first team. They have the chance to do well and stay there. So I said to them: ‘Take this luck and take this opportunity because it’s important until the other players come back fit’. You never know, there could be an injured player and a young player comes in and plays a great game and they stay with the first team until the end of their career. So I’ve told them: ‘Guys, be ready and always take the opportunity’. If they have quality to be with the first team then why not take the opportunity and play and enjoy yourself?”

The likes of Brandon, Mason and others have been doing this haven’t they?

“Yes. Mason, since the first training session that I saw him in, and Brandie [Brandon Williams], Jimmy [Garner], Angel [Gomes], Chongy [Tahith Chong] and all the players. Axel as well, although I don’t see him as a young guy, for me, he has been in the first team for a long time, Timo [Tim Fosu-Mensah] as well, but the younger ones, they have the quality, they have everything to be in the first team. They’ve been playing and having some minutes and they should enjoy it when they’re on the pitch and work hard. Mason is scoring goals, Brandie has been playing games like he’s been there for six months already. This is about what the club is about and what the manager wants.”

Finally, these guys clearly look up to you…

“I feel old now!” [Laughs]

You’re only 26, but do you feel you can help them and advise them?

“I think and I hope I can help them. This is one of the biggest clubs in the world and maybe the biggest club in history and they have the chance to be in this club. So I say to them: ‘Take your chance, play, you are young, you have quality, you have nothing to be afraid of’. I hope I can give them the good example when I’m on the pitch and outside the pitch and, even though I don’t see myself as old, I hope that the young players will, one day, come and take my position [when I finish playing]. That’s how it is, I won’t play forever. We all give our best on the pitch and I hope these young players will become legends here at the club, they have to enjoy it and really appreciate the chance they have here.”

The video of Pogba's interview
 
Jesse Lingard's s pathway from the Academy to the first team included a number of loan spells that set him up for life in the Manchester United first team.
Speaking exclusively to the UTD Podcast, which you can listen to on Deezer and other podcast providers, he shares his memories of how it all played out for him…

WEARING THE SHIRT FOR THE FIRST TIME

“I remember pulling the shirt on for the first time when I was about one, when I first kicked a ball… well, I can’t remember it, but I’ve got a picture of it! So that’s my first memory of a United kit. Then when I was seven, I started to have trials and I signed when I was nine. It was left down to me to pick a club, really, and I felt Man United was best suited for me personally, so I chose United. There were other clubs interested – City, Liverpool, Everton, also Crewe at the time – so I had a handful of choices. But I knew Man United was going to be my home.”

MIXING WITH THE FIRST TEAM

“I was cleaning boots for the first team, that was still going when I was coming through the ranks, around the Under-16s, Under-18s. You used to get chores around the training ground, like cleaning boots, making drinks, bringing the balls in. It was good principles and morals [to be taught] at that time. There were also Christmas tips from the senior players which was all right, y’know! They weren’t too bad (laughs) but, at Christmas-time, they made the young ones do a song or a dance in the canteen – I remember doing a bit of a dance, there were some funny ones. They don’t do it any more for some reason but I think they should bring it back, to be honest!

”Coming through, the ones I looked up to personally were Scholesy and Giggsy, obviously Wazza and Ronaldo too, but growing up and being around them at the time, they were the ones there to give advice. Rio as well, Nani was there at the time. There were a lot of players around to give good advice but it was mainly Scholesy and Giggsy that I looked up to. Most of the players did that [gave advice] in the first team – like when you’d go on the pre-season tour, you’re one of the youngsters and so you’d get players like Rio, who would put their arm round you and just say things like, ‘Enjoy your football, play your own game.’ And that does give you that confidence. Also the staff at the time – Sir Alex was amazing, Rene Meulensteen was amazing when I was coming through. So for me, I had it all set in stone.”

THE LOAN YEARS

“I went out on loan to get match minutes and to see what it’s like in those leagues. When you’re in those changing rooms and people are playing for points, that’s when you really know and it really kicks in. You’ve got to help them get their points, you don’t want to come in and fob it off because you’re going back to Manchester United, you need to really knuckle down and help them, which I did. At that time, Sir Alex was great with me and going out on loan helped me 100 per cent. The first time was with Leicester, and then it was Birmingham, Brighton and Derby. It was the real world – I was living on my own, in a hotel.

“At those times I was only going for three months here, three months there, so I stayed in hotels, eating hotel food. It wasn’t right but it had to be done. It could be lonely, to be fair. You’d just go back to your hotel room and watch films, so it can be secluded staying in a hotel, but once you get out there and go to training, you come alive then. I made an impact at Birmingham, and then to come back to United I knew – I think it was after one tour – that I still wasn’t ready to make the jump. I knew in myself, so I took it upon myself to go back out on loan.”

EDGING CLOSER TO THE FIRST TEAM

“I went out on the 2013/14 pre-season tour under David Moyes and I scored a few goals, and I was in the matchday squads and travelling, but not being on the bench and not playing. So I needed games and minutes, and so I took it upon myself to get back out on loan and get some much-needed minutes, as I hadn’t been playing since the start of the season. I spoke to David Moyes and he agreed that for a player just to be travelling and sitting in the stands all the time, it can be mentally tough. I believed in myself but it came in stages. I think I still need to more, even to this day, to be honest. You need to believe in your own ability, have the confidence to play, have the confidence to get on the ball and make things happen. That’s what type of player I am.”

THAT LONG-AWAITED FIRST-TEAM DEBUT

“It was frustrating – all my family were there, my friends, and all the texts were flooding in before the game wishing me good luck, but it’s just one of those things. It happens, it was a setback but I really didn't dwell on it. I got back but I wasn’t really fully fit, so I dipped out on loan again and went to Derby for the rest of the season. We were trying to get into the play-offs, which we didn’t, unfortunately, but I knew within myself when the right time was to play for the first team. I couldn’t just be thrown in willy-nilly, it had to be the right time for me. To come back and start again with another pre-season, I had to try to prove myself once more. It’s always tough, but you’ve got to get through those moments. Looking back at the trophies I’ve won now – the EFL Cup, the FA Cup, Europa League, Community Shield… winning those are the best moments in my career, they’re at the top, and to score in three out of those four games is huge.”

 
Fantastic record and one which must be unique in professional world football. Definitely not a record that the media gives the club anything like enough credit for achieving. So happy that we have a manager in Ole who is committed to carrying on this great record. Thanks to top1whoisman for posting and to Tony (Mr. MUJAC) for the research and information.
 
Amazing record. Anyone know who is in second place and how many games in a row for them?
 
Amazing record. Proud to be a United fan.
 
It would be the ultimate troll job if Ole fielded a team of foreigners and old feckers against Everton.

--------------------------De Gea----------------------------

Wan Bassaka------MaGuire---Lindelof--------Shaw

Young------------Fred-----Perrera-------------James

-------------------------------Mata--------------------------

-----------------Martial-------------------------------

Subs:
-Grant
-Jones
-Matic
-Rojo
-Romero
 
FujiVice said:
It would be the ultimate troll job if Ole fielded a team of foreigners and old feckers against Everton.

--------------------------De Gea----------------------------

Wan Bassaka------MaGuire---Lindelof--------Shaw

Young------------Fred-----Perrera-------------James

-------------------------------Mata--------------------------

-----------------Martial-------------------------------

Subs:
-Grant
-Jones
-Matic
-Rojo
-Romero
Click to expand...

Pereira counts as a homegrown player with the criteria mentioned above ;)
 
top1whoisman said:
Paul Pogba says it's “unbelievable” that Manchester United have had a homegrown player in every matchday squad since 1937 and the midfielder admits he is proud to be part of such a phenomenal record.

Pogba spoke to MUTV's Stewart Gardner in an exclusive interview this week and reflected on his time coming up through United's youth ranks after he arrived at the club in 2009.

The World Cup winner praised the club's ethos and culture of developing young talent and he believes the Reds' current crop have a great opportunity to cement their place in United's history.

Paul, this weekend, we celebrate the 4,000th consecutive match of there being a youth-team graduate in a first-team matchday squad going back to 1937 – can you believe that record?

“Where was I then [in 1937]?! [Laughs] It’s unbelievable and it shows the identity of this club and the culture of this club. We’ve always talked about youth players coming into the first team and it’s just carried on. It’s something that is in this club, it’s incredible it’s been happening since 1937. You want to carry this on for the young players and the next generation to go and play in the first team.”

When you joined Academy 10 years ago as a 16-year-old, what were your impressions of it when you first arrived?

“When I arrived here, everything felt big! The training ground was big, all the players were big, the pitch was big, everything was big and I had my eyes open the whole time. Then I put the shirt on for the first time and I said: ‘Wow, I came to Manchester United’, I just couldn’t believe it. When I started training with the first team, I was 17, and I remember Vida [Nemanja Vidic] was there and Ji-sung Park and I touched Vida and I saw how tough and how strong he was! I knew then I had to work hard to get into the first team. It was a really great experience as a young kid to come here at 16 and see everything so big, and see all these top players and a top manager. To be there, having them sat next to us around the training ground, was a dream come true.”

How did the club help you when you came over? Presumably, you didn’t speak much English and it must have been hard to move to a new country initially?

“Yes it was. I couldn’t speak much English but I went to school here so it helped me a lot. Just talking with the guys in the dressing room helped me, that’s when you learn the most, I think. Obviously, you learn the naughty words first [laughs] and all the players really helped me. I remember I was with Joshua King a lot and he helped me improve my English, also Ryan Tunnicliffe and Jesse [Lingard] as well, although I couldn’t understand Jesse’s English and I still don’t! [Laughs] He speaks so fast with a Mancunian accent and I have to try to figure out what he’s saying! He was one who helped me a lot but everyone did.”

Which coaches stand out as being very important to you in those early days?

“I was with Jim Ryan and Paul McGuinness, they helped me a lot, Warren Joyce, as well, after that. For a French guy coming here at 16 to understand another culture and another way of playing football, you needed a bit of time to adapt and they all really helped me, as did the players. It felt great to be trained by those people and I think the last time we won the Youth Cup was under Paul and Jim, they helped us improve a lot.”

When you first come here do you get taught about the history of the club?

“Yes. Jim Ryan talked to me a lot about that. He used to play for United and he used to tell me: ‘At this club, young players have a chance to get into the first team’. He said that was the identity of the club. He talked about training hard, passing the ball, pass and run, all this stuff… Pat [Evra] was here too, Rio [Ferdinand] as well and even Berba [Dimitar Berbatov] talked to me a lot about it all. They help you understand how it is here, Pat talked to me a lot because he’s French. Obviously the boss, Sir Alex Ferguson, talked to me as well and he came to see us as well when we were playing in the Reserves or the FA Youth Cup. He used to give us messages and he’d also take us [on trips] for cup games. It shows the history this club has with involving young players and how it’s always been like that.”

Winning the Youth Cup was a really big deal wasn’t it - in 2011 against Sheffield United…

“Harry [Maguire] was there [for Sheffield United]! We had a good team and a lot of players who played in the first team or went to other clubs. Will Keane played in the first team then he went to Hull, Mike Keane is at Everton, Jesse, myself and Sam Johnstone, Tyler Blackett, Rav [Ravel Morrison], Larnell [Cole], Ryan Tunnicliffe, they’re still playing… we had a really decent team.”

How important do you think your grounding and upbringing in the Academy has been to your development in becoming the sort of the player that you are now?

“From the start, like I said, when I arrived here, they show you the way of playing. All the coaches show you how to prepare yourself to get into the first team. Warren Joyce used to train us very hard to be ready for the first team. The first team always used to play with 4-4-2, so we used to do the same meaning when you got the chance to be with the first team you could play and not be lost on the pitch.”

Ole clearly has a lot of faith in young players – how important is it that the pathway is there for players to continue to come up through the Academy into the first team?

“I’ve said to a lot of the young players who have been with the first team: ‘Guys, you don’t know how lucky you are’. Unfortunately for us, we’ve had a lot of injured players and it’s therefore a big chance for the young players to be involved with the first team. They have the chance to do well and stay there. So I said to them: ‘Take this luck and take this opportunity because it’s important until the other players come back fit’. You never know, there could be an injured player and a young player comes in and plays a great game and they stay with the first team until the end of their career. So I’ve told them: ‘Guys, be ready and always take the opportunity’. If they have quality to be with the first team then why not take the opportunity and play and enjoy yourself?”

The likes of Brandon, Mason and others have been doing this haven’t they?

“Yes. Mason, since the first training session that I saw him in, and Brandie [Brandon Williams], Jimmy [Garner], Angel [Gomes], Chongy [Tahith Chong] and all the players. Axel as well, although I don’t see him as a young guy, for me, he has been in the first team for a long time, Timo [Tim Fosu-Mensah] as well, but the younger ones, they have the quality, they have everything to be in the first team. They’ve been playing and having some minutes and they should enjoy it when they’re on the pitch and work hard. Mason is scoring goals, Brandie has been playing games like he’s been there for six months already. This is about what the club is about and what the manager wants.”

Finally, these guys clearly look up to you…

“I feel old now!” [Laughs]

You’re only 26, but do you feel you can help them and advise them?

“I think and I hope I can help them. This is one of the biggest clubs in the world and maybe the biggest club in history and they have the chance to be in this club. So I say to them: ‘Take your chance, play, you are young, you have quality, you have nothing to be afraid of’. I hope I can give them the good example when I’m on the pitch and outside the pitch and, even though I don’t see myself as old, I hope that the young players will, one day, come and take my position [when I finish playing]. That’s how it is, I won’t play forever. We all give our best on the pitch and I hope these young players will become legends here at the club, they have to enjoy it and really appreciate the chance they have here.”

The video of Pogba's interview
Click to expand...
What a wholesome interview. :drool: Now sign that new deal Paul and let's get back to where we belong. :devil:
 
Gator Nate said:
That Pogba interview doesn't sound like someone getting ready to leave the club.
Click to expand...
Wouldn't read too much into it. Interviews with the club itself are always going to be heavy on propaganda, and fair enough.

It's nice to hear him talk so positively about being a United graduate though. I doubt he holds any ill will towards the club itself, so it's natural he'd be positive about it.
 
And even now with the likes of Rashford and Mctominay and hopefully Greenwood we're producing top quality players for the first team.

This is why the countless "Look how much better the academy at City is compared to Utd" articles that have been written in the last 10 years have always wound me up.

Yes, I'm sure the City facilities are state of the art and I'll bet they pay more to their youth players too, but they don't develop anyone. Since they won the jackpot the only player they've produced is Foden who everybody raves about and yet he only plays dead rubbers in Europe or cup games if they're playing league 1 or or lower opposition.

4000 games is an incredible achievement and it hasn't had the praise or attention it's deserved.
 
It's mind boggling, it has to be up there with the greatest sporting achievements in history!
 
This record is older than my grandparents. Its just amazing. Talk about legacy and tradition. Whats liverpool record at? Any idea anyone? They also produce exceptional youth system as well.
 
Rashford - first choice
Mctominay - first choice
Pogba - first choice (if he stays)
Greenwood - backup young talents
Lingard - squad rotation
Williams - backup young talents
Pereira - squad rotation
Garner - backup young talents
Tuanzebe - backup young talents

Its likely we will keep this record for next 5-10 years at the very least.
 
FujiVice said:
It would be the ultimate troll job if Ole fielded a team of foreigners and old feckers against Everton.

--------------------------De Gea----------------------------

Wan Bassaka------MaGuire---Lindelof--------Shaw

Young------------Fred-----Perrera-------------James

-------------------------------Mata--------------------------

-----------------Martial-------------------------------

Subs:
-Grant
-Jones
-Matic
-Rojo
-Romero
Click to expand...
Andreas is an academy player :smirk:
 
This is fantastic record and also huge credit to @Mr. MUJAC for digging this record. Must have been tedious task checking so many team sheets.
 
SteveW said:
He should stay. We're building something here. He'll regret it in a couple of years if he goes imo.
Click to expand...
He won't regret it. He is a professional footballer who has already won the biggest prize in World football. Now he will obviously look to win the biggest prize in Club football. Unless our vision is to win the CL in the next 5 years, which will coincide with Pogba's prime, he will look to move. I doubt millionaire footballers give a second thought about homegrown revolutions and that stuff.
That only appeals to fans like us who care about the history of the club and what we stand for. I would love to tell my kid when she grows up about this and why I feel proud to be supporter of this club. People who have been associated with the club for majority of their lives, they will understand the significance of this unique statistic and also that it's not just a statistic.
 
Surely this counts for something in negotiations. Im not convinced with the young and British bias but we must be one of the best destinations for any young player either for youth team or first team.
 
Great all time academy graduates team (signed before the age of 18) in the Times today.

Jack Crompton
Played in first team 1946-55, 212 appearances

Gary Neville Bill Foulkes Duncan Edwards Roger Byrne
1992-2011, 602 1952-69, 688 1953-58, 177 1951-58, 280

David Beckham Bobby Charlton Nobby Stiles Paul Scholes
1992-2003, 394 1956-73, 810 1960-71, 397 1994-2013, 718

George Best Marcus Rashford
1963-74, 474 2016-19, 191

They suggest Ryan Giggs and Mark Hughes on the bench. Think I'd have Hughesy (admittedly, my all time favourite United player) instead of Marcus just now but let's hope that in a few years time he earns his place amongst the United greats. He's going about it the right way the last few games. Not sure Paul Scholes would want to be out on the left, didn't work for England, but hey. Can only be Big Dunc for our captain.

Great interviews posted above. What a club, what a record.
 
It really is a fantastic achievement. Long may it continue. I've always liked seeing young players come through and be in the first team. From a pragmatic view, if we can produce first team or even squad quality players it saves us money too. I do feel like there's a significance in the extra attachment you get from/to a club produced player.
 
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