Man Utd have a ready-made Luke Shaw replacement who’s ‘too good’ for academy level

Manchester United have been told they have a natural replacement for Luke Shaw in the shape of Godwill Kukonki.Shaw has had his fair share of injuries throughout his career, but he has been omnipresent in Man Utd’s lineup this season, starting in all 28 Premier League fixtures thus far.DOWNLOAD THE OFFICIAL STRETTY NEWS APP FOR ALL THE LATEST UPDATES & BREAKING NEWS – STRAIGHT TO YOUR PHONE! ON APPLE & GOOGLE PLAYBut unfortunately for the 30-year-old, he picked up a knock during the win over Crystal Palace on Sunday, forcing him to leave the pitch prematurely.Michael Carrick replaced the London native with Noussair Mazraoui, who’s originally a right-back, but also capable of playing on the left flank.While the severity of Shaw’s injury remains unclear at this stage, MUFC might have to do without him in the coming weeks.Michael Carrick could promote Godwill Kukonki to fill in for Luke ShawAs things stand, fielding Mazraoui at left-back appears to be the most obvious solution, especially since Tyrell Malacia has been almost ruled out of consideration. The Dutchman, who was desperate to leave the club in January, is simply biding his time, waiting to see out his contract and trying to revive his career elsewhere.(Photo by Ben Roberts Photo/Getty Images)In addition to Shaw, Man Utd have another injured left-back in the shape of Patrick Dorgu, who won’t return to action for several weeks.Therefore, Man Utd might have to resort to their academy to bolster their full-back options while waiting for the injured players to return to the squad.As UnitedAnalyst argues, United’s first team could do with a left-back like Godwill Kukonki, who can dart down the flank and make important contributions at both ends of the pitch. Could do with a left-back who gets up and down all game long… https://t.co/CKNgzRd5SF — UnitedAnalyst (@UnitedAnalyst7) March 1, 2026The same X account had already dubbed Kukonki as ‘too good’ for the U18 level on the back of a dominant display against Man City last month.A closer look at Godwill Kukonki’s path at Man UtdThe 18-year-old is a towering centre-half who stands at 196cm. Nevertheless, Man Utd U18 head coach Darren Fletcher has been capitalising on his ever-improving technical skills by fielding him as a left-back.Ahead of Sunday’s clash against Crystal Palace, the teenager was included in Man Utd’s matchday squad, but he didn’t make it to the bench. He was only selected on one occasion this season, and it happened to be Ruben Amorim’s last game in charge. Kukonki’s Career Stats Appearances Goals Assists Man Utd U18 37 2 3 Man Utd 21 1 0 1 Man Utd Youth League 17 0 1 While the youngster was on the bench against Leeds United, he has yet to make his senior debut for United, even though Amorim had identified Kukonki as one ready for a promotion. Hence, it remains to be seen if the mini-injury crisis will finally see him make his first-team bow.