Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has called up four young talents to first-team training at the Red Devils’ Carrington training ground complex as he looks to repeat the development of starlet Alejandro Garnacho. The Argentine has become one of Ten Hag’s first port of calls off the bench to impact games, having only made his full debut for the club in October.
Youth development has been a priority for the Dutch boss as Facundo Pellistri has also recently featured for United and Ten Hag has extended an opportunity to the club’s younger generation to impress and throw their name into the hat for future promotions.
Sam Murray, Omari Forson, Marc Jurado and Dan Gore were all pictured getting involved at Carrington on Friday, though none made the matchday squad to face Southampton while fellow youngsters Pellistri, Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo were involved on Sunday.
Murray has been at United since 2021 and made more appearances than any other player for the under-18s that reached the 2022 FA Youth Cup final before making the step up to the under-21 side, though the left-back will have to get the better of Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia in order to feature under Ten Hag.
Forson, a creative midfielder, was nominated for the Premier League 2 Player of the Month award for February and has made a big impression on the coaching staff after United beat Arsenal to the former Tottenham starlet’s signature. United’s future midfield appears to be in good hands with the likes of Forson following in the path of Mainoo and Zidane Iqbal as all three hope to break into Ten Hag’s squad.
Jurado made his United debut in a friendly while the World Cup was ongoing against Cadiz in December, as the right-back made a strong cameo off the bench with an assist for Mainoo against the Spanish side.
Though Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Diogo Dalot have both enjoyed strong campaigns, Ten Hag has not made either the undisputed first-choice and there could be a place in the team in the next few years for Jurado.
During the World Cup break, Gore was reportedly involved in a training ground bust-up with Anthony Martial as several youngsters stepped up to first-team training. The teenager put a crunching challenge in on the Frenchman which Martial did not react well to, before the pair apologised and tempers were cooled.
The incident does not appear to have held Gore back as he was invited to compete with the senior team once again, though he will have been reunited with Martial as the striker has also returned to training following injury.