Interim manager, Ryan Giggs, has handed future stars, Tom Lawrence and James Wilson their dream debuts at Old Trafford tonight.
Both youngsters have caught the eye this year, after very impressive displays in the reserve team. Both players seem to have a bright future and have both been earning their way through the ranks at Manchester United.
Wilson in particular has impressed many at the United academy, forcing former boss, David Moyes, to place the youngster on the bench vs Newcastle a couple of weeks ago. Wilson has scored 19 goals this term in the reserves and was eagerly anticipated at the prospect of making a full debut for the first team.
“Hopefully it [my debut] is not too far off,” he admitted. “It would be great and it’s what you work towards. Every time, I just think: ‘I could be in that first team’. “It would be great to get a few minutes on the pitch and a real experience to see how different the games are and the pace of it. I need to see how I deal with the atmosphere, the pressure and other factors.” It seems that Ryan Giggs has acted upon this and allowed the player his first full debut for the club tonight.
Lawrence, on the other hand, has been at United since he was eight, progressing through the age-groups in the Reds’ Academy and being part of the 2011 FA Youth Cup-winning squad.
Unfortunately, his final season at Academy level proved to be an injury-ravaged affair. Despite starting the campaign in splendid form, the lengthy absence ensured he missed the bulk of the action before returning towards the end of the season.
A brace in the last game, against Stoke City at Carrington, saw him finish on seven goals in only eight starts and Reserves boss Warren Joyce admitted he would have been an option for promotion into his plans had it not been for the injury.
Lawrence is expected to line up behind Wilson tonight, and both will be looking to catch the eye of many in the Old Trafford crowd. They both will hopefully be handed opportunities like fellow team-mate Adnan Januzaj and potentially further their careers in the coming years.
Ryan Giggs has named himself on the bench tonight, alongside Nemanja Vidic, whos long serving run at Manchester United will come to an end, as the player will leave for Inter Milan at the end of the season.
By Ollie Brown
