Tom Huddlestone: Why is he playing for Man United U21? | OneFootball

Tom Huddlestone will always be one of the Premier League‘s biggest ‘what if’ stories.

The former Tottenham man, who made his top flight debut at the tender age of 20, has certainly put some mileage into his legs in English climes.

In the colours of Derby, Spurs, and Hull City, Huddlestone would ultimately make only 242 Premier League appearances as niggling injury issues curtailed his playing time.

As a result he was never quite able to fulfil the remarkable potential he showed as a budding youngster but that certainly didn’t stop him from giving us some wonderful memories.

While he may have only netted 11 goals in England’s premier competition, Huddlestone will always be remembered for being a bona-fide long distance merchant.

He had a thunderous strike on him and was able to pluck clean magnificence out of the blue, often when it was least expected of him.

Sadly, even his penchant for the sublime wasn’t enough to keep him in among the elite circles and he soon found himself plying his trade in the Championship.

Spells with Hull City and Derby County yielded fleeting moments of joy for the Englishman but he was never able to claw his way back into the big time.

Now, at the age of 35, Huddlestone’s career is reaching its twilight years as he looks to end his playing days in the best way.

So where does one like Tom Huddlestone do that? Well, in the Manchester United U21s, of course.

Having earlier in the summer, Huddlestone has now played his part in two clashes for the United junior side.

Huddlestone was signed under the agreement that he would not be part of the first team squad, and would be available exclusively to the U21s to provide in-game coaching as well as during the week.

His main focus, per the Metro, will be to raise standards in training.

However, he looks set to enjoy some game time as well and footage has since emerged of his debut against Fulham’s U21 side – it makes for fascinating viewing.

Check it out in the clip below:

Well there you are. We can safely bet you never thought you would see Huddlestone battling it out for the United U21s.

The next step for Huddlestone remains unclear, but it probably involves him slowly evolving into an exclusive coaching role at the club.

Still, while he’s got energy in those legs and with the wealth of experience he boasts, he could prove to be a valuable asset to have around the youth ranks.