Season Review: A year of almosts for United’s treble-defending u18s

Manchester United u18s finished their season last week in what ended up being a campaign of almosts.

Having won the treble in 23/24, Adam Lawrence’s young Reds ultimately couldn’t repeat their feats this year despite what was objectively still a great season.

U18s Premier League

United started their season away to their biggest competitors in Manchester City.

A tight encounter, United came away 0-2 winners thanks to goals from Gabriele Biancheri and Bendito Mantato that put United in the driver’s seat in the title race from the first week.

The next week, United hosted Liverpool where Biancheri and Tyler Fletcher both found the net in a 2-0 win.

With City dropping points again in their second match against Norwich, United looked well on their way to back-to-back titles as they went on an 11 match winning streak that extended all the way until February.

The run included a series of routings which showed United were well above the competition, including a 9-0 win over Stoke City and 8-0 over Leeds United among other convincing victories.

As with the u21s, February delivered a sticky patch for Lawrence’s side in front of goal.

With Chido Obi up with the first team and Biancheri filling in with the u21s after returning from injury, the u18s were left light in attack. This saw them drop points for the first time in a disappointing 0-4 loss to Manchester City at Carrington.

Still having the upper hand in first place, two draws to Liverpool and Newcastle followed the loss and United dropped down into second place.

Adam Lawrence’s men found their groove again, putting together seven wins on the trot. This included a 13-1 demolition of Leeds United which saw Victor Musa score six goals, Jim Thwaites three goals, and 14-year-old JJ Gabriel came off the bench for his debut to also add a brace late on.

Despite the incredible form, United were unable to catch City in the title race as the crosstown rivals went on a 23-match winning streak of their own to deny United the chance to recover the two-point gap.

Finishing the league campaign on 63 points from 24 matches, one point higher than in the treble season the year prior, United’s results would have seen them crowned champions of the Premier League North in every season since the league’s inception in 2012.

Scoring 90 goals and a goal difference of +66, United finished 17 points above Everton in third place, displaying the two Manchester clubs’ dominance in the league.

FA Youth Cup

Often described as the most important competition at u18s level, the FA Youth Cup was the one trophy that alluded United’s u18s treble winners in 23-24.

Looking to make amends after a shock loss to Swindon Town the year prior, United started their cup run with a 5-0 destruction of Coventry City before dispatching Preston North End 5-2.

United then came up against Chelsea, consistently one of the strongest academy sides in the country. But United continued the pattern of scoring five goals as they ran away 5-1 winners with Chido Obi scoring a hat-trick.

Obi was absent for the next round which was a big occasion as United travelled to the Emirates to take on Arsenal in front of a sizable crowd of over 7,000.

Arsenal’s Max Dowman proved a tough test for United and looked to be sending them out of the competition before Jayden Kamason, who put in a phenomenal performance, scored the equaliser late on to send it to extra time.

Just returning from injury, Bendito Mantato came off the bench to score the winner as the United fans in attendance roared in jubilation.

The win set United up for a semi-finals clash with Aston Villa, the eventual winners of the u18s Premier League national final this season after topping the South table.

It was more of a tense affair against Villa compared to the end-to-end action against Arsenal.

Villa took an early lead, but James Scanlon soon equalised and the sides played out a 1-1 draw which saw it go to penalties. Unfortunately, luck wasn’t with United as Villa won the shootout and ultimately lifted the FA Youth Cup, defeating Manchester City in the final.

Premier League Cup

As the defending champions of the Premier League Cup, United started the competition by topping their group.

Initially defeating Leicester City 2-1, United dropped points to Tottenham before ending perfectly with a 3-0 win over Leeds United, goals coming from Jayden Kamason, James Scanlon, and Chido Obi.

The quarter-finals came during United’s brief downturn in February as they visited West Ham. Tyler Fletcher opened United’s scoring before turning provider to James Scanlon to score the second.

Jim Thwaites almost scored the winner with a patented free kick which cannoned off the post, but the match ultimately ended 2-2 and went to penalties which West Ham succeeded in.

As with the FA Youth Cup, United were defeated by the eventual winners with West Ham raising the trophy after beating Reading 2-1 in the final.

UEFA Youth League

An u19s competition, the UEFA Youth League has always proved tricky for United stretching across the u18s and u21s age groups.

Typically relying on the first team to qualify, United qualified through the domestic champions path as the Premier League national winners in 23/24.

First up United took on Lithuanian side FK Zalgiris, who they easily dispatched 11-2 on aggregate.

Next up was a strong AZ Alkmaar, who had recently lifted the Youth League trophy themselves.

An own goal gave United the lead in the first leg but they couldn’t hold on as AZ turned it around to win 2-1. In the return fixture at Old Trafford, the score remained deadlocked at 0-0 to eliminate United.

Despite not being able to capture any trophies during the season, the fact United came so close in them all, often narrowly losing out to the eventual winners, shows the class and depth of the group coming through.

Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the season is not ending trophyless but the fact that it is Adam Lawrence’s last season at the club as he now looks to pursue new challenge elsewhere.

Summary

Premier League North u18s – 2nd place

FA Youth Cup – Semi-finals

Premier League Cup – Quarter-finals

UEFA Youth League – Third Round

Top Scorers – James Scanlon (21), Gabriele Biancheri (19), Victor Musa (16)

Most Assists – Tyler Fletcher (12), Amir Ibragimov (10), James Scanlon (10)

Most Appearances – Jim Thwaites (33), Dan Armer (32), Amir Ibragimov (32)

Featured image James Fearn via Getty Images

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