Manchester United have confirmed that they have appointed fan favorite and class of 92 member Nicky Butt as their head of the youth academy. Manchester United have been left behind by their rivals Manchester City when it comes to youth football as City have invested in a new academy and are currently the first choice club for youngsters in Manchester.
United who have a great tradition of bringing out youngsters to the first team are under pressure to continue the tradition. Under Ferguson, the class of 92 was a very successful batch of youth team graduates who went on to win the treble in 1999. Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, David Beckham, the Neville brothers and Nicky Butt himself were all from United’s famed youth academy.
After the appointment of Butt, Woodward said,
“I am delighted that Nicky has accepted the role of head of academy.”
“Nicky has the traditions and heritage of this club in his blood and he is the natural choice to ensure that, in modernising the way the academy operates and shaping the new investment we are making, it retains the values and the focus that it has always had.”
“Manchester United’s academy is completely focused on producing young players for our first team.”
“As a graduate of its finest team in the modern era, Nicky will bring passion, energy and experience to drive the academy forward, retaining the characteristics that give us a competitive advantage – namely an unmatched track record of player development together with the runway of first-team action.”
Manchester United fans will hope that Butt’s appointment will bring in some dividends in the near future. In recent times most of the talented players from the academy have failed to make the grade. Paul Pogba left United, Ravel Morrison had off-field issues, Januzaj is struggling to get into the first team and Lingard doesn’t look like he can play at the highest level.
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