Manchester United have reportedly signed six youngsters from Marcus Rashford’s old club Fletcher Moss Rangers.
The Red Devils have raided the Under-9s team for six of their biggest talents, while another of their players has joined Manchester City, according to the Manchester Evening News.
MORE: Manchester United set to loan out these two promising midfielders next season
The report says the players to move are: Cole Umebuani, Teddy Sherwood, Jaice Dore, Rafael Smith, Dane Mullings and Ka’eo Ingram.
United also previously raided the Fletcher Moss Rangers for Rashford, as well as for Jesse Lingard, Danny Welbeck and Wes Brown, according to the Manchester Evening News.
MUFC fans will now hope this lot can eventually follow those big names into the first-team setup at Old Trafford, where bringing through youth is seen as a hugely important part of the club’s identity.
Many of the club’s best ever players came through the Man Utd academy, such as Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, David Beckham and the Neville brothers.
Speaking about the six youngsters linking up with United, Fletcher Moss Rangers coach Remi De Jonge said, as quoted by the MEN: “They’ve all done absolutely superb this season, they competed a year up in the East Manchester Junior Football League, so they are in academic Year 3 playing Year 4 football.
“That’s amazing in itself, and across the course of the season only narrowly losing four games is absolutely brilliant as we don’t consider it a loss more a learning curve.
“The boys are obviously a super talented bunch & to be able to sign for such big clubs like Manchester United and Manchester City is absolutely brilliant for the club and myself, more importantly the families and even more the boys.
“It’s well deserved, they turn up to training put their all in & it pays off in the games. As a club it shows we’re doing something right we’re giving kids a platform to show how good they’re, Fletcher Moss itself has a huge reputation for doing just that in Manchester. There is a sense of pride and honour.
“There’s many demands in the modern game coaches have to abide by. I just try to do my best for the kids I see my role in particular is to just make sure the boys are having fun in a safe environment while developing life skills that will stay with them forever.
“We’re not a Premier League side but amongst the grassroots community Fletcher Moss is well known. In the past such names like Rashford, Lingard, Welbeck and Brown have made us national, players of that calibre coming through the club, but we’ve been making waves in Manchester well before then.
“The boys know, these are their idols, Marcus Rashford is their idol. They have that in the back of their mind that Marcus Rashford has done an almost identical journey as them or the start of it, so that gives them a boost in confidence.”