New Delhi: Manchester United’s academy in Carrington has long been synonymous with producing talented gems that go on to become world-beaters in the footballing world. There have been numerous players to come out of the academy who’ve gone on to become regular starters at their club and there have been some that have gone on to become one of the very best in the world. Sir Bobby Charlton, George Best, Gerrard Pique, and Paul Pogba were all part of one of the best academies in the world.
The quality of talent the academy is capable of producing is evidenced by Manchester United’s famed Class of ’92 which produced six future United stars- Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, David Beckham, Nicky Butt, brothers Phill and Gary Neville, all of whom would go on to become integral members of the 1999 treble-winning squad. More recently, we have seen the likes of Marcus Rashford, Mason Greenwood, Scott McTominay, and Anthony Elanga all turn out for the club with varying degrees of success.
However, the last two academy products to make their debut for the club, Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo have set the league alight with their displays and look to be future stars for the club. With Garnacho making his breakthrough in 2022/23 and Mainoo in 2023/24, we could see the next United gem, Toby Collyer announce himself on the big stage in 2024/25.
Toby Collyer: Manchester United’s midfield saviour?
Toby Collyer could be the defensive midfielder the club are looking for. (Photo by Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images)
The 20-year-old Collyer would be someone whose name eagle-eyed Manchester United fans would’ve seen on their team sheets last season. The midfielder was named on Erik Ten Hag’s substitute bench on eight different occasions and started training with the first team in February 2024. While he wasn’t able to make an appearance for the club last season, he has been impressing on the pre-season tour in the US.
He made his first appearance of the pre-season in the second half of the 1-0 defeat to Rosenburg and also played the first half of the 2-0 win over Rangers. He has impressed everyone with the calmness he’s shown on the ball and his awareness of his surroundings makes him an asset in the middle of the park for the club. He has been extremely good at retaining possession of the ball and there are few players at the club currently that can do the same.
Yeah, Toby Collyer is definitely breaking through this season..
pic.twitter.com/5gtJGjsk5M
— United & Everything Football (@UEF_Podcast) July 21, 2024
He aims to have his team keep hold of the ball and favours safe back or side passes but has also shown his capabilities of playing long passes on occasion. Apart from his skills on the ball, he utilizes his body well to keep hold of possession, getting himself in the way of the ball and any other player. He could fit in well in the two-man pivot of Ten Hag’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation given his quality. A tall, strong midfielder who knows how to stop counter-attacks, his performances are reminiscent of a young Declan Rice, bursting onto the scene at West Ham.
His defensive contributions off the ball are extremely useful for a player in his position. His game awareness, as mentioned earlier, is top-notch and that helps him make runs towards his goal to thwart any chances of an opposition attack. Athletically gifted, Collyer is a relatively pacey defensive midfielder, something that is a rarity in his position and even more so given he stands at 6’1″.
His defensive work is more reliant on blocking off the spaces for opponents to pass and then works on intercepting the passes. His presence was evident in the game against Rosenborg as he would get in spaces to block cutbacks in the final third on multiple occasions. While his passing leaves room for improvement, with the youngster being only 20 years old he can easily develop his passing skills over the years and there are workarounds available at the club that can help him develop while not exposing his weakness.
New Leader in the making?
Toby Collyer has already been given the armband once in the pre-season. (Photo by Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images)
Despite being so young in his career, Collyer has shown he is a capable leader on the field. He has represented the England U-16 and U-17 sides at the youth level and has already shown his leadership qualities, captaining the side at both youth levels he’s played at. He has also taken the armband for United’s youth sides as well. Recognizing his ability to be a leader on the pitch, Ten Hag also handed the youngster the armband for the second half against Rosenborg, which was a huge show of faith in the youngster’s talents by his manager.
Ever since Wayne Rooney left the club in 2017, United have had four captains for four different years at the club. Michael Carrick replaced Rooney as captain but he could barely play that season and retired at the end of the campaign. Antonio Valencia was the next one but like Carrick, he was also barely featured and left the club once the season ended. Next up was Ashley Young, who was a solid player but never an inspiring choice for captain and then Harry Maguire, whose captaincy was stripped away by Erik Ten Hag.
With Bruno Fernandes now sporting the armband, it finally looks like he’s stopped United’s revolving door of captains. When the time comes, Collyer could be the one to take the armband from the Portuguese if he continues his development. He’s already captained in pre-season at the age of 20 and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him being given the responsibility again.
How can he fit in the first team?
Collyer could fit well alongside either Eriksen or Mount. (Credits: Getty Images)
With Casemiro seemingly out of the door and Scott McTominay not really being a world-class holding midfielder, there is space in the team for one and the Red Devils are crying out loud for one. Manuel Ugarte is being linked with a move to Old Trafford with the Urguayan agreeing to personal terms with the club and Joao Neves looking increasingly like becoming a PSG player, it seems like Ugarte joining United is a real possibility.
With Ugarte in, it could be a good thing for Collyer as he can learn from him a lot. They’re both similar types of players as both love to get the tackle in and break up play, but Ugarte is very good with his passing as well. The only downside to Collyer right now is that he hasn’t shown he’s much of a ball-carrier but that is something he can learn and he can fix his ball distribution with time as well, something that he can learn from Ugarte.
Moreover, when giving him chances in the first team, pairing him alongside more creative players like Mason Mount or Christian Eriksen can help the team utilize the youngster to his full strength while covering his weakness for the time being. With either Mount or Eriksen partnering him, he can stick to his defensive midfield strengths while just laying the ball out for his partner to be the ball carrier and progress the ball forward.
There is still time for the midfielder to showcase his talents more in the remaining pre-season games against better opposition in Arsenal, Liverpool, and Real Betis and given he just signed a contract till 2027, it seems like he is due for a breakthrough season at Old Trafford, following in the footsteps of fellow academy mates, Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo.
The famed Manchester United academy is busy churning out new gems every year and it looks like have another talented prospect on their books who is impressing in the pre-season. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
