David Horseman has left Manchester United to join Premier League rivals after just three months at Old Trafford in a “shock departure” for the club.
An early exit
Horseman, 41, joined United in the summer as the Under-21’s assistant manager, working closely with manager Mark Dempsey and head of development, Travis Binnion.
United’s Academy is one of the best in the country with an excellent track record of producing first-team players, for both the senior side or other teams throughout the country or on the continent.
The Red Devils ranked third last year in the ‘Academy Productivity Rankings’ – a detailed analysis of which youth system produces the most English Academy graduates – behind Chelsea and Arsenal.
And there has been a renewed focus on securing the best young talent from across the globe since INEOS assumed the helm at Old Trafford.
Players like Chido Obi and Ayden Heaven, signed from Arsenal’s academy, or youngsters from further afield such as Sekou Kone (Guidars FC in Mali) or Diego Leon (Cerro Porteno in Paraguay) demonstrate this – and securing the best coaches to oversee their development is another critical aspect that approach.
But it’s Arsenal who have performed their own raid to sign the highly-rated Norseman after just three months in Manchester.
Arsenal confirm Norseman’s arrival
The 41-year-old coach will become Arsenal’s “elite player development coach” in the Gunners’ academy, according to the Manchester Evening News, who describe the move as a “shock departure” for United.
“”We are delighted to announce that David Horseman has been appointed as our Professional Development Phase – elite player development coach,” the north London club revealed in a statement.
“Under the guidance of our Head of Academy Coaching Luke Hobbs and Academy Manager Per Mertesacker, David will be working closely with our academy coaches, including PDP Lead Ken Gillard and under-21s head coach Max Porter to manage our under-19s in the UEFA Youth League and the EFL Trophy, where we are soon to compete against League One teams Cardiff City and Exeter City, as well as League Two side Newport County.
“An experienced and qualified coach, David holds a UEFA Pro Licence and has previously held coaching positions at first-team and academy level at Southampton, Watford, Bristol Rovers, Forest Green Rovers and Manchester United.
“David was present to oversee our opening Youth League clash against Athletic Club on Tuesday and will take charge of the remaining five matches in the competition.”
United have not announced an immediate replacement but the club are in “talks” with Alan Wright who would join to coach the Professional Development Phase group, having been recommended to sporting director Jason Wilcox by Binnion.
Feature image George Wood via Getty Images
Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social
Darragh Fox
Darragh is a writer for The Peoples Person who spent three years as a history graduate slowly realising football was by far the most interesting thing to write about.
