Manchester United Football Club Under-21s is the most senior of Manchester United's youth teams and the club's former reserve team. They play in the Premier League 2, the highest tier of the Professional Development League. The team is effectively Manchester United's second-string side, but is limited to five outfield players and one goalkeeper over the age of 21 per game following the introduction of new regulations from the 2022–23 season, a change from three outfield players over age 23 introduced in 2016–17. The age limit previously was again 21, from 2012–13. The team's current manager is Adam Lawrence, who took over from Travis Binnion in 2026.
They were champions of the former Premier Reserve League five times (in 2002, 2005, 2006, 2010 and 2012) between its introduction in 1999 and its dissolution in 2012. The team also won the 2012–13 Professional U21 Development League 1 in its inaugural season, and again in 2015 and 2016. The team also participates in the regional Manchester Senior Cup and the Lancashire Senior Cup. From the 2019–20 edition, they also participate in the nationwide EFL Trophy along with senior teams from levels 3 and 4 of the English football league system, as teams from levels 1 and 2 are restricted to players aged 21 and under.
From November 2008 to August 2013, the team played its home matches at Moss Lane in Altrincham, the home of Altrincham For the 2013–14 Under-21 Premier League season, the team has played the majority of its home matches at Salford City Stadium in Barton-upon-Irwell. Since 2014–15, the team play its home matches at Leigh Sports Village. Rules set out by the Premier League state that at least three home league games per season must be played at the club's main stadium, Old Trafford. In previous seasons, the team has played at the Victoria Stadium, the home of Northwich Victoria, and Ewen Fields, the home of Hyde United.
Manchester United also has an Under-18s team that plays in the Premier League Under-18s Group 2 and the FA Youth Cup. The under-18s play their home games at the club's Trafford Training Centre in Carrington.
Under-21s The first record of any matches played by the Manchester United reserve team dates back to 6 October 1883, when the club was still known as Newton Heath LYR F.C., a 4–1 defeat away to Pendleton Olympic Reserves.Shury and Landamore (2005), p. 72. They predominantly played friendlies for their first nine seasons, although they entered the first four seasons of the Lancashire Junior Cup, starting in 1885–86; they won just one of their five matches played in the competition over those four years, beating Churchtown in October 1887, before losing to Park Lane Wanderers in the next round. In 1892–93, they entered league football for the first time, taking part in the second season of the Lancashire Combination; they finished third,Shury and Landamore (2005), p. 79. only missing out on second place by virtue of an inferior goal average. That final position was only matched by a further third-place finish in 1895–96, and another in 1905–06.
In 1911, the club became founder members of the Central League, winning their first league title in its second season in 1912–13. They played in the Central League until 1999, when the competition was superseded by the Premier Reserve League, winning the title nine times, the second most of any club in the league's history. The Premier Reserve League was split into northern and southern divisions, but it was not until 2005 that a play-off was introduced to determine an overall champion. Manchester United won the northern title in 2002, 2005, 2006, 2010 and 2012, winning the overall title in each of the last four. The reserve team was dissolved in 2012 and replaced by an under-21 side that played in the newly founded Premier League 2. They won three of the first four PL2 titles, only missing out in 2013–14. The age restrictions were changed to under-23s in 2016, before being reverted to under-21s in 2022.
A Manchester United team competed in the Lancashire Senior Cup from the 1889–90 season, initially entering the first team but by the 1950–51 season they had started entering a reserve team only. Including first-team victories, Manchester United have won the Lancashire Senior Cup 15 times (including a shared title with Liverpool in 1920), most recently as of their last entry in the competition in 2012–13. They also entered the reserves in the Manchester Senior Cup every year from 1999–2000 until the competition was abandoned in 2016, winning 12 titles.
As of the 2025–26 season, the Manchester United Under-21s compete in Premier League 2 (since 2012), the EFL Trophy (since 2019), the National League Cup (since 2024) and the Premier League International Cup (since 2016).
Current squad
Out on loan
Managerial history Years Name 1946–1964 Jimmy Murphy 1964–1969 Wilf McGuinness 1969–1970 John Aston Sr. 1970–1971 Wilf McGuinness 1971–1974 Bill Foulkes 1974–1981 Jack Crompton 1981–1991 Brian Whitehouse 1991–2000 Pop Robson Jimmy Ryan 2000–2001 Mike Phelan 2001–2002 Brian McClair 2002 Mike Phelan 2002–2005 Ricky Sbragia 2005–2006 Brian McClair 2005–2006 René Meulensteen 2006–2008 Brian McClair 2008–2011 Ole Gunnar Solskjær Warren Joyce 2011–2016 Warren Joyce 2016–2017 Nicky Butt 2017–2019 Ricky Sbragia 2019–2022 Neil Wood 2022–2023 Mark Dempsey 2023–2026 Travis Binnion 2026– Adam Lawrence
Honours Premier League 2: 3 2012–13, 2014–15, 2015–16 Premier Reserve League Play-off Final Winners: (4) 2005, 2006, 2010, 2012 Northern Champions: (5) 2002, 2005, 2006, 2010, 2012 Central League: 9 1912–13, 1920–21, 1938–39, 1946–47, 1955–56, 1959–60, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97 Central League Division 1 West: 1 2005 Central League Cup: 1 2005 Manchester Senior Cup: 10 1999, 2000, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 Lancashire Senior Cup: 15 1898, 1913, 1914, 1920 (shared), 1929, 1938, 1941, 1943, 1946, 1951, 1969, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013 SuperCupNI: 1 2017
Under-18s
The Manchester United Academy was established in 1998, following the reorganisation of youth football in England, but has roots stretching all the way back to the 1930s with the establishment of the Manchester United Junior Athletic Club (MUJAC), and has been responsible for producing some of Manchester United's greatest ever players, including the club's top five all-time appearance makers, Ryan Giggs, Bobby Charlton, Bill Foulkes, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville, and the new wave of home-grown talents known as Fergie's Fledglings. The current academy is based at the club's Trafford Training Centre, an site in the Manchester suburb of Carrington.
In addition to football coaching, academy players receive development support in areas including education, sports science, medical care, rehabilitation and performance analysis.
The Manchester United youth team is statistically the most successful in English football, with nine players in the English football Hall of Fame (Duncan Edwards, Sir Bobby Charlton, George Best, Nobby Stiles, Mark Hughes, Paul Scholes, David Beckham and Johnny Giles). Manchester United also have the best FA Youth Cup record, winning on ten occasions out of 14 final appearances.
The academy comprises age-group teams ranging from Under-9s up to the flagship Under-18s, who currently compete in Group C of the Premier Academy League and in the FA Youth Cup. The Under-16s and Under-18s typically play their academy league games at 11am on Saturday mornings at Carrington, while Youth Cup games are generally played at either Altrincham's Moss Lane ground (where the under-23s play their home games) or the club's 76,000-capacity Old Trafford home, in order to cater for the greater number of supporters these fixtures attract.
In 2007, Manchester United Under-18s won the Champions Youth Cup, intended to be an analogue to the FIFA Club World Cup for youth sides, beating Juventus 1–0 in the final in Malaysia. It was their first and only title, since the tournament was scrapped after only one edition.
Current squad As of 27 September 2026
Nat.PlayerDate of birthPositionNumberInternational capsPrevious clubJoined2nd Year ScholarsCharlie HardyGK67Derby County6 December 2025Zachary WatsonGK78July 2025Jacob WatsonDF71July 2025Jariyah ShahMF72Capped at Under-17 levelJuly 2025Jayden NgwashiDF73July 2025Rafe McCormackDF75Capped at Under-19 levelJuly 2025Jay McEvoyMF74Capped at Under-15 levelJuly 2025Nathaniel-Junior BrownMF76July 2025Noah AjayiFW70July 2025Neithan BarbosaFW94July 20251st Year ScholarsJake FordGK84July 2026Idris FabiyiDF82July 2026Connor LaurieDF85July 2026Sam O'BrienDF87July 2026Gazi IbragimovDF90July 2026Harley Emsden-JamesDF91SouthamptonJuly 1, 2025Jaume CamachoMF64July 2026Edson DeJonge-SeirosMF79July 2026Emmanuel ZiroMF81July 2026Jacey CarrickMF83July 2026Harlem McLaughlinMF86July 2026Pharell SilvesterMF89July 2026Jodie NgangaMF92July 2026Camron MpofuFW80July 2026Kai RooneyFW99July 2026Under-16sBassirou NkotoMFDouka NkotoFW
Honours Under–18 Team U18 Premier League National Final Winners (1): 2023–24 North Division Champions (2): 2017–18, 2023–24 FA Youth Cup: 11 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1964, 1992, 1995, 2003, 2011, 2022 U18 Premier League Cup: 1 2023–24 Blue Stars/FIFA Youth Cup: 18 1954, 1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 2004, 2005 Champions Youth Cup: 1 2007 Lancashire League Division One: 12 1954–55, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1992–93, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98 Lancashire League Division Two: 5 1964–65, 1969–70, 1971–72, 1988–89, 1996–97 Lancashire League Division One Supplementary Cup: 4 1954–55, 1955–56, 1959–60, 1963–64 Lancashire League Division Two Supplementary Cup: 10 1955–56, 1956–57, 1959–60, 1961–62, 1963–64, 1964–65, 1965–66, 1969–70, 1971–72, 1976–77
Doubles and Trebles Trebles U18 Premier League, U18 Premier League North, U18 Premier League Cup(1): 2023–24
Under–16 Team U16 Premier League Shield: 2 2024–25, 2025–26 SuperCupNI: 8 1991, 2003, 2008, 2009, 2013, 2014, 2022, 2026
Under–15 Team U15 Premier League Super Cup: 1 2024–25 U15 Premier League Cup North: 1 2024–25
Staff
RoleNameDirector of Academy Steve TorpeyHead of Academy Football Development and Methodology Darren Hughes Head of Academy Recruitment Connor Hunter Head of Player Development and Coaching (U17–U21) Darren FletcherUnder-21 Head Coach Adam LawrenceUnder-21 Assistant Head Coach Alan WrightLead Academy Goalkeeping Coach (U21)Tommy LeeAcademy Goalkeeping CoachChristopher BackhouseUnder-21 Performance Analyst Curtis QuinnUnder-18 Head Coach Darren FletcherUnder-18 Assistant Head Coach Colin LittleSenior Academy Coach Mark DempseyAcademy Goalkeeping Coach (U18)Kevin WolfeHead of Academy PerformanceMatt WalkerPDP Athletic Development Coach Luke LawrenceHead of Player Development (U13-16) and Under-16 Lead Coach Tom CurtisUnder-15 Lead Coach Tommy RoweHead of Player Development (U9-U13)Eamon MulveyUnder-14 Lead CoachVacantUnder-12 Lead Coach Lee UnsworthYDP Athletic Development Lead (U12–U16)Alex Ouzounoglou
Notable youth team players The following is a list of players who have played in the Manchester United youth team (U16–U21) and represented a country (not necessarily their country of birth) at full international level. Players who are currently playing at Manchester United, or for another club on loan from Manchester United, are highlighted in bold.
Stan Ackerley Adnan Ahmed Arthur Albiston Amad Diallo John Aston Sr. Ray Baartz Phil Bardsley Bebé David Beckham Mylan Benjamin Di'Shon Bernard George Best Clayton Blackmore Jackie Blanchflower Mark Bosnich Robbie Brady Evandro Brandão Febian Brandy Shay Brennan Ben Brereton Díaz Ronnie Briggs Wes Brown Alex Bruce DJ Buffonge Francis Burns Nicky Butt Roger Byrne Fraizer Campbell Johnny Carey Joe Carolan Craig Cathcart Bobby Charlton James Chester Tahith Chong Tom Cleverley Kenny Cooper Hugh Curran