Manchester United travel to Championship side Luton Town tonight in the Carabao Cup.
Many readers may not be all too familiar with the Red Devils’ opposition, as it was only six years ago that they were competing in the Conference Premier. The Hatters have risen through the ranks though, and have started their 20/21 season off with four wins from four.
The fixture does, however, still hold that ‘cup feel’ to it, and anything other than a United victory will send shockwaves throughout the competition. Luton’s players will no doubt be rallied up for the game, most notably Ryan Tunnicliffe, a name that will strike familiarity with United fans.
The Englishman started his playing career off at Carrington, spending a total of five years with the club. Tunnicliffe was loaned out three times by Sir Alex Ferguson, before being permanently moved on to Fulham. He joined The Hatters just last season, and has since established himself as a key starter for the club.
During his time at United, the midfielder was part of the U18s side that won the FA Youth Cup back in 2011. He partnered Paul Pogba in this team, and the two could potentially face-off again tonight. Leading up to the game, Tunnicliffe has been speaking to the Press Association about his former academy team-mate: “I have played alongside him quite a few times a while back but to play against him would be quite fun and I am sure he would say the same.
Embed from Getty Images“Everyone can see he is world class. I study players and I have seen him in training but I am not the same player when I was 17 and I don’t think he is the same player as he has got bigger and stronger. I have an idea (how Pogba plays) but it is up to me to stop it.”
Looking back on their years together, the Englishman revealed what the now superstar, household name was like as a youngster: “When he first came he was a good lad. He was loud but I had been there a while so anything I could do to help him, I knew he would be my midfield partner so we tried to bond and have a relationship off the field and it was nice of him to say that.
“I think I am a nice guy and if he thinks I helped him, I am happy as he has gone on to do great things so if I can take a slight bit of credit for that, I am happy.”
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