Manchester United win u18s Premier League Cup for first time in history | OneFootball

Manchester United have lifted the u18s Premier League Cup for the first time after a 2-1 victory over rivals Manchester City.

Founded in 2013, the competition was initially set up just at u21s level as a counterpart to the u18s FA Youth Cup. But, in 2017 the Premier League Cup was added to the u18s and u16s (later changed to u17s) age groups.

Before Adam Lawrence’s sides victory, United had failed to make it to the final of the competition in any of the three age groups, let alone go on to lift the trophy.

United’s previous best result in the u18s competition was a semi-finals loss to Manchester City in the 2018/19 season.

The club’s current u18s are the strongest group seen in a long time though, as they lift the cup and league double having also won the Premier League North – a feat achieved for the first time in six years.

Lifted by captain Finley McAllister, the Salford native is a boyhood United supporter who can regularly be found attending first-team matches home and away, and his hard work in last night’s cup win left him on the ground after the final whistle as he looked to fight off cramping muscles.

Ethan Wheatley’s first half brace ultimately secured the 2-1 win over Manchester City in what was a resilient 90 minutes of football, as United fought to the dying seconds to claim the trophy.

The striker, who was taken off at the half-time break in order to be involved with Erik ten Hag’s first team against Sheffield United on Wednesday night, has found a comfortable home in the Premier League Cup this season, scoring nine goals in six matches in the competition.

In addition to his double in the final, Wheatley also scored two in the semi-finals win over Crystal Palace. With 20 goals to his name on the season, it is no surprise his recent performances have caught the eyes of Ten Hag and seen him named to the bench for the first team.

But Wheatley wasn’t the only one to impress as United defeated Reading, Southampton, Arsenal, Crystal Palace, and Manchester City en route to lifting the trophy, with the entire squad playing a part.

Normally not having a chance to face the southern clubs due to the split in the u18s league, Adam Lawrence was happy with the club getting to experience new opponents on their run to the finals.

Lawrence stated “it’s given us a different taste and a different flavour for the boys to be playing against teams across the country.”

With development always at the forefront of the coaching staff’s minds, Lawrence added that, “I think in development, when you get to these stages you realise that you need that level of competition and you need those sort of tests to see where you’re at as part of your journey. And as part of your development as a player and as a team as well.”

A level of competition which has pushed United to the limits – quite literally as Elyh Harrison was forced to make a cup-winning save late into injury time – but has ultimately been conquered by the outstanding group of players.

With a number of the players who played a key role in winning the u18s double already working their way into Ten Hag’s matchday squads, it is only a matter of time before fans see them take the next step in their development towards make their first-team debuts.

Now equipped with the experience of winning trophies, Carrington’s special class of 2024 will be looking to bring their winning mentality back to the senior level at Old Trafford.

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