Where Does Mourinho's Signings Leave Man Utd Youngsters

Author: Raphael Minter


Jose Mourinho was unveiled as manager of Manchester United on Tuesday July 5. The special One faces an uphill task as manager if he is to transform Manchester United to the powerhouse it once was.

With the end of the Euros in sight, Mourinho has started making his purchases and the acquisitions of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and HendrickMkhitaryan shows that the Special One is giving no room for trial and error. This creates a huge concern for youth players such as Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard, players that served as a safe haven for Louis Van Gaal and Manchester United when the team exhibited sub-par performances last season.

Football has transformed out of the days where Ajax won the Champions League with youngsters. Jose Mourinho is a manager who values results and due to the intensity of the English game coupled with how great starts are in the Premier League, players who have vast experience in the game are preferred to players who are testing the waters.

Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and Memphis Depay led the line for Manchester United with invaluable support from Jesse Lingard but Zlatan’s Ibrahimovic’s experience and decoration in the game coupled with his relationship with Jose Mourinho leaves no question unanswered as to which player would lead the line for United next season.

Defender Fosu-Mensah made cameo appearances for Manchester United last season but with the tempo of the English Premier League and the derby in sight, Manchester United is gradually heading into the end of an area where youth players were given a chance to show what they could offer the team.

At Real Madrid, Mourinho occasionally played Alvaro Morata, a player who led the line for Spain at Euro 2016. Daniel Carvayal was loaned out to Bayer04 Leverkusen but fans clamored for his return when Ancelotti replaced Mourinho and he helped the team win La Decima and Un Decima.

At Chelsea many players were loaned out to several clubs. Many fans have argued on the stance of why Ryan Bertrand a Chelsea youth player who played and won the 2012 Uefa Champions League final was sold to Southampton with Mourinho opting to play Cesar Azpilicueta, a right footed player as left back.

Mourinho’s Personal Duel with Pep Guardiola

Manchester City has the finances to back up Pep Guardiola’s plans. The two managers have battled it out on several occasions amid their time as coaches of Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. This time they would be facing off in the Manchester Derby. With the financial backing Guardiola possesses and the players Manchester City has assembled Mourinho cannot rely on youth to keep his accolade as the best manager in the game.

The acquisitions Mourinho make are geared towards breaking the dominance of the tagged "noisy neighbours" and also to prove a point against his former employers Chelsea.

Jose Mourinho comes into this season with an objective of taking Manchester United back to the top, silencing Pep Guardiola and City and taking revenge against Jurgen Klopp.

This undoubtedly ends an era of youth team play for Manchester United and for now their performances would prove vital in making the first-team but currently their futures are lingering in the shadows.


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