Manchester United’s academy record continues but the club has lost touch with its spirit – opinion

Manchester United have included an academy graduate in their matchday squad for every match since 1937. It was a record which caused some worry last week when Kobbie Mainoo dropped out of the squad due to an injury. A late call-up for Jack Fletcher to the bench ensured the streak was not broken. But despite the record continuing, has the spirit behind the streak been lost? Youth, Courage, Success The presence of the Manchester United academy in the first team has been a longstanding tradition. Not only has an academy graduate been in every matchday squad since 1937, but they have had a critical presence in United’s history. From the Busby Babes to the Class of 92, United’s most successful triumphs have come with a backbone of academy talents. Up until recent years with the likes of Marcus Rashford as key stars, United have regularly led the league in academy player involvement. In the 2020/21 season, Manchester United gave 10,735 minutes to academy graduates, more than any other club and five times more than crosstown rivals Manchester City. Losing touch with academy roots While the club continues to champion the academy record, with multiple reports on the official website this season about the streak and Ruben Amorim’s acknowledgement of it, the numbers have fallen off a cliff. From consistently leading the league in academy involvement, United are now closer to the opposite end this season. While the streak limped through last week thanks to the extended size of Premier League benches, the meaning behind it has lost its way. Simply continuing the record with an academy player named to the bench with no chance of featuring goes against the importance of the academy in yesteryears and what made it as famed as it is today. In the most recent Premier League matchweek, 17 of the 20 clubs featured an academy product in their matchday squads. With nine spots on the bench, it is almost harder not to name an academy graduate than it is to include one. A marked difference to the three-man bench in the early 90s. The lone soldier Kobbie Mainoo is the only academy graduate to feature for Manchester United in the Premier League so far this season. But after 11 matches, he has only 138 minutes to his name. A paltry amount of match time has seen the young starlet even asking for a move away from the club on loan. United rank 15th in the league for academy minutes, a table which they have been so used to leading. Instead, it is rivals Manchester City who top the table, boasting 2,296 minutes across five academy graduates used. Academy players used up to game week 11 in 2025/26 TeamAcademy products in starting XI in GW11Academy products on the bench in GW11Minutes in Premier League for Academy productsAcademy products used this season Manchester City2322965 Chelsea1220434 Arsenal2415835 Fulham1115072 Newcastle United1112472 Brighton1211014 Crystal Palace119942 Liverpool129013 Wolverhampton Wanderers118152 Leeds United017352 West Ham114113 Aston Villa013102 Nottingham Forest022411 Sunderland031912 Manchester United011381 Bournemouth0161 Everton0011 Brentford0000 Burnley0000 Tottenham Hotspur0300 “The academy has really slipped” Jim Ratcliffe’s recent comments on the academy have shown the club is out of touch with its roots from top to bottom. Focusing on money, Ratcliffe was keen to highlight the lack of high-value sales of academy graduates. It is a thought which goes against the spirit of Manchester United, which is to introduce academy players into the first team and take care of the welfare of those who do not make it. It also lays blame in the wrong area, which is evident by the seven United academy graduates who are plying their trade in the Champions League while United are completely out of Europe. There is no better figurehead for this than Álvaro Fernández Carreras. Carreras was a shining light in the academy, picking up the U21s player of the year award during his time in Manchester. But despite excelling on loan at Preston North End, where he was named their young player of the year, Carreras never made a single competitive appearance for United even during a period when no senior left-backs were available. Instead, Carreras was pushed out for a reported paltry sum of €6 million with €3 million in potential add-ons. A year later, he was flipped for €50 million to Real Madrid. Another big summer move included another United academy graduate in Anthony Elanga. But again, it was another club who pocketed the £55m sale price, nearly four times the amount United received just two years prior. With big transfer moves, seven players in the Champions League, two of whom featured in a recent El Clásico, the Manchester United academy has not slipped at all. It continues to develop high-level players as it has done for decades. What has slipped is the upper echelons of Manchester United, who have failed to utilise the talents coming from the academy and have pushed them out for considerably less than their true value. Losing touch on the field and off United have not just lost touch with the academy on the pitch but also off it. Ratcliffe’s cost-cutting has continued to target the club’s academy coverage, which has left supporters forlorn in their attempt to support the academy and U21s. Recent matches for the U18s and U21s have not been shown on the club’s channel MUTV nor have highlights been provided afterwards. Previously providing coverage of nearly every U18s and U21s match a decade ago, the current coverage has been halved and fallen behind competitors. Manchester City have been leading the pack again with full on-demand coverage of academy matches and securing the rights to the EFL Trophy outside of the UK. Last month, the U18s and U21s clashed with matches at the same time. MUTV opted to show just the U21s match against Tottenham Hotspur. Fans were left bemused though at the fact that Tottenham Hotspur were able to simultaneously stream their U18s and U21s matches. So far this season, MUTV has shown less than 50% of U18s and U21s matches. The lack of coverage is a continuation from last season, which also fell below the 50% mark. Academy matches on MUTV SeasonU18s matches on MUTVU21s matches on MUTV 2025/26 to 21st November 20255 of 127 of 14 2024/2521 of 3714 of 35 During a period of mixed results in the first team, a reconnection with the bloodline of the club could offer a lot of grace within the fanbase. Featured image Jan Kruger via Getty Images The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Colm Murphy A football obsessed Canadian who moved to England to enjoy the beautiful game. Colm has been keen follower of Manchester United’s famed academy since seeing a fresh faced Adnan Januzaj for the club’s u18s and has been writing about football with a focus on youth development for over 10 years. You can follow him X: RedYouthUnited.