Former Manchester United star, Juan Mata, has waxed lyrical on Manchester United starlets, Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo.

In a season of darkness, two shining beacons of hope have been the play of academy products Garnacho and Mainoo.

The Red Devils have struggled immensely in this campaign as they have barely been able to secure a positive goal difference and find themselves in a real fight for even Conference League football.

It is true that they can look forward to an FA Cup final later this month but this should hardly be the yard stick for measuring success for a team as big as United.

However, one shining light has been the rise of certain young players with Omari Forson, Willy Kambwala and Ethan Wheatley all making their senior debuts this season.

However, what has impressed pundits and fans the most is the role played by Mainoo and Garnacho, as they have become indispensable members of the first team in such a short period of time.

Former player Mata has become the latest to wax lyrical over the meteoric rise of the two teenagers.

Commenting on the rise of the players to the club’s official website he claimed, “[I’m] very [impressed]. I mean, I knew Alejandro, I know what he’s capable of.

“He was already showing signs of how good he could be. I think this season he made a step forward. He’s more consistent. He’s performing at a very high level, almost week in, week out, scoring incredible goals.

“I’m very happy for him, for his family too. He deserves it.”

The Argentinian was briefly a team mate of the Spaniard as Garnacho actually made his debut in Mata’s penultimate game for the Red Devils against Chelsea in 2022.

One player he would have probably been less aware of is Mainoo, although he has not been any less impressed by the Englishman.

“I’m really impressed with Kobbie. Of course I haven’t seen much of him before, but he looks like he’s been playing for the club for longer than [he has].

“[In his] first games for United he already looks so mature. He looks like a player. With the ball, without the ball [he’s] focused. [He’s got a] bright future ahead.”

Mata also spoke of the positive impression the Stockport native has made on the rest of the squad and claimed that his current captain only had positive things to say about him as a human being.

“Bruno [Fernandes] tells me he’s also a great kid. He listens. He wants to learn. He’s humble. So, he has everything to succeed.”

While both players have had a drop-off in form as of late, this is only to be expected with the huge amount of games they have both been asked to play this season.

The teens will be aiming to win their first piece of silverware of their senior careers on the 25th of May at Wembley and if Erik ten Hag’s side are able to do it, it is logical to assume that both starlets will play a key role in it.

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United played six matches across all competitions. In this period, Erik ten Hag’s men recorded two victories, one loss and three draws – the most recent one of which was the 1-1 against Burnley at Old Trafford last weekend.

Club captain Bruno Fernandes is competing to win the prestigious award against teammates Alejandro Garnacho and Harry Maguire

Fernandes has enjoyed a sensational April that saw him bag an impressive seven goals and two assists in the six games he featured.

The Portugal international found the back of the net against Chelsea, Liverpool, and Coventry City in the FA Cup semi-final and also grabbed braces vs. Bournemouth and Sheffield United.

Such was the level of Fernandes’ impact on the team in April that he was named man-of-the-match on three of the six occasions United faced off against their opponents.

Three of Fernandes’ goals are also in the running to claim United’s Goal of the Month prize too. These are his headed finish at Chelsea, his fantastic strike from the halfway line against Liverpool and finally the rocket he produced in the 4-2 triumph over Premier League strugglers Sheffield United.

Garnacho capped the month with two goals and one assist in the six games he featured. The 19-year-old is on the three-man shortlist for a Player of the Month award for the second consecutive month, in what is shaping up to be a very productive individual campaign for him.

The Argentine winger kicked off April with a double against Chelsea and it was very unfortunate that he was part of the losing side on that occasion. One of his goals – the headed finish he came up with from Antony’s sublime trivela assist – is an entry in United’s shortlist for the Goal of the Month award.

His assist was for Maguire’s equalising goal vs. the Blades which paved the way for United to complete a sensational comeback.

In Marcus Rashford’s absence due to injury in the Reds’ last two games, Garnacho really stepped up and stood up to be counted.

Finally, Maguire also scored two goals against Coventry City and then in the next game vs. Sheffield. Unsurprisingly, both were headed finishes.

It may go unnoticed but Maguire was available to Ten Hag for selection amidst a crippling injury crisis that forced him to mostly play alongside Casemiro at the heart of the team’s backline. The England international barely put a foot wrong.

United will announce the winner of the Player of the Month and Goal of the Month awards on Friday.

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Manchester United’s Antony has become the latest player to praise the impact of the youngsters coming through the club’s academy.

In what has been a dark year in many respects for United, the progress of the youth teams and academy players have been a shining light.

This season has seen the rapid development of academy graduates Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnachoin  the first team, while Omari Forson and Willy Kambwala have also become regular members of the squad.

In addition, last week saw the introduction of Ethan Wheatley against Sheffield United, who became the 250th academy graduate to represent the first team.

The form of the under-18 team has also been a cause for huge optimism, as they won the Premier league Cup against Manchester City and destroyed arch-rivals Liverpool 1-9 earlier this month.

Captain Bruno Fernandes has also already spoken on the need for the first team to create the right conditions for academy players to continue to flourish when they break into the squad. Speaking to the club’s official website, Antony has become the latest player to lavish praise on the young players breaking through.

“It’s certainly been an excellent season for Garnacho. He’s still a very young lad and full credit to him for his performances. I’m really happy for him and hope he continues doing what he knows how to do with a focused mind and continues helping us marking, making passes and running for the team.”

The 24 year old also reserved praise for Kambwala and Kobbie Mainoo.

Discussing the French defender’s recent game against Liverpool he stated, “I’m really pleased for them. Willy is really hard-working, always training hard and I’m delighted with the game he had against Liverpool. He had a great game and I congratulated him afterwards.”

“Kobbie has had a longer run of games,” Antony continued. “He’s a huge talent. I see so much talent there and I’m really happy for his performances.”

“I’ve been in the position of these young players – although I’m still only 24, I was also playing at their age as well. With their talent, together with focus, a supportive family and looking after themselves, things will happen naturally for them.”

The Brazilian winger scored at the weekend and certainly put in one of his better performances as of late. He will be hopeful that he and the young players can finish the season on a high with a victory in the FA Cup final in less than a month’s time.

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Manchester United need to continue to help young players flourish according to captain, Bruno Fernandes.

The Red Devils have not had much to shout about this season and this was on full show once again yesterday afternoon as United failed to hold onto yet another lead as they conceded a late penalty against Burnley at Old Trafford.

The result ends United’s stumbling attempts to reach a Champions League spot for next season and leaves the Red Devils with an uphill task to secure Europa League football, with Newcastle breathing down their necks.

However, the side’s commitment to youth has shone through in this campaign and this was seen in Ethan Wheatley becoming the 250th academy graduate to make his debut for the first team last week.

Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo have also established themselves as two of the first names on the team sheet and despite their form dipping as of late due to the exhaustion of their first full season in the league, they have given hope to United fans in a season of darkness.

Captain Bruno Fernandes spoke to the club’s official website about the importance of looking after the younger players and said that it is the role of the first team to create the environment for the academy players to flourish when given the opportunity.

“At this club, you are used to having young players coming through the Academy and you’re used to the club buying young players that they feel can have a future at the club. You just mentioned two of them (Garnacho and Mainoo)”.

“They’ve been playing most and they’ve been doing well. They’ve been doing great things”.

“But, when the team is playing better, it’s going to create an even better place for them to [continue their] development and to be a better player. To be in a better place, being more confident, having more trust and playing even better”.

“Even if they’re doing well, I think there is always space for improvement for everyone, but obviously when the team improves, everyone else improves individually”.

However, Fernandes was not all praise, as he claimed that both players had bad moments and they need to develop greater consistency if they are to make it at the very top level.

“I think the team needs to step up in certain moments to also make them feel confident to have their bad moments, their bad games, or even to let them have less pressure on themselves to be the players that have to make the difference in certain moments”.

“I think they’ve been really good; they’ve been improving themselves. It’s just the first steps. They need to keep going, because obviously the expectations are going to grow, game by game, season by season”.

Fernandes has had his critics as captain of United but whether it be playing through the pain barrier, being the most creative player in the Premier League or inspiring the youngsters, the Portuguese has really stepped up the last few weeks of the season for his side.

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