Before Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took the reins at Manchester United, senior departures from the squad were very scarce.
In the post Sir Alex Ferguson era, the club have made just £308m in player sales over seven transfer windows, with Angel di Maria equating for around 16% of this figure alone.
The hesitancy to move figures on no doubt correlates with the poor planning from above since the Scotsman left the club, with there being no elaborate system or philosophy being put in place. Alongside such incompetent management, the squad has also simply lacked the quality to justify a large volume of sales.
Now though, plans have put in place to establish a fresh core of players. Not only has the new recruitment team been identifying specifc profiles of players to build with, but the academy is being utilised much more efficiently.
A restructure behind the scenes occurred last summer, with Nicky Butt being made the ‘Head of First Team Development’. The aim of such a position is to help set a pathway out for youth talents to be integrated into the first-team picture, with the Englishman providing updates and reports to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Mason Greenwood and Brandon Williams have been the two obvious successes of this new blueprint, with both players becoming prominent figures of the senior squad. The latter’s emergence has downplayed the need for a new left-back, and impacting the club’s transfer plans could become a new trend for many of the U23 figures.
There is much talk about moving on the stagnated defensive figures of Phil Jones, Chris Smalling and Marcos Rojo this summer, inevitably sparking speculation that United will need a new centre-back. Players like Joe Rodon and Ben White have been mentioned, but Solskjaer may opt to look for replacements already at the club.
Teden Mengi is no doubt the first name that comes to mind. The defender has enjoyed a successful debut season with the U23s, featuring eighteen times – only Ethan Galbraith has made more appearances. His presence at the back has helped form a new solid backline for Neil Wood’s side, with the team boasting the best defensive record in the league.
Mengi’s development has been tracked closely by those at the club, with the 18-year-old recently been pictured training with the first-team. As per the new framework being implanted at the academy, a loan move would be the next step for the player, but Solskjaer could look to keep him with the reserves and act as senior cover.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe same can also be said about the defender’s partner in crime, Di’Shon Bernard. Many fans will be familiar with the 19-year-old, as he featured against Astana back in November. Although the game resulted in a 2-1 defeat, the teenager maintained a 97.3% pass completion rate, highlighting his composed, distributional abilities.
Bernard does have a year on Mengi, meaning he would potentially be the more suspect to receive a loan move this summer.
Regardless though, both figures are capable of offering cover to the squad’s senior options, meaning transfer investment can be put into other areas, as opposed to another defender. Neither player will be rushed next season, but opportunities will begin to emerge for them to make a name for themselves.
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