Yesterday, Manchester United has agreed to sign Colombia's 17-year-old midfielder Orozco, and the player will officially join after he turns 18 next summer. The Daily Mail then published an article talking about Manchester United's strategy...
Yesterday, Manchester United has agreed to sign Colombia's 17-year-old midfielder Orozco, and the player will officially join after he turns 18 next summer. The Daily Mail then published an article talking about Manchester United's strategy to tap young players.
About five years ago, Manchester United took the lead in the competition for Kessedo, but ultimately did not sign the Ecuador midfielder. Brighton bought him for £4 million and sold Kesedo to Chelsea two and a half years later for the then-British record of £115 million.
While there is no guarantee that Orosco will be the next Kessetdo, this explains to some extent why Manchester United has stepped up its search for young talents since Sir Ratcliff's minority acquisition last year.
Shortly after its £1.25 billion investment was approved, Ratcliff explained: "I think, in some way, I would rather try to sign the next Mbappe than spend a lot of money to try to succeed. Signing Mbappe is not a clever one, anyone can do it, and it is more challenging to find the next Mbappe, the next Bellingham or the next Roy Keane."
Since then, Manchester United has signed Obi Martin, Diego Leon, Haven and Secu Cone, which is part of the club's recruitment strategy to identify potential to enter Manchester United's first team or prove to be a good investment.
Manchester United football director Jason Wilcox has experience in similar models at Manchester City, and recruiting director Christopher Vivier has a history of discovering exciting young talents in the Red Bull system and Chelsea. This move has been supported by Manchester United executives under the two.
Orosco is the latest potential stock identified by Manchester United's global scouting network and signed by the club. This midfielder has appeared on behalf of youth teams at all levels in Colombia and led the national team to the final of the South American U17 Championship this year, and eventually lost to Brazil in a penalty shootout.
Orosco has signed a pre-contract with Manchester United and will become a Manchester United player when he turns 18 in July next year. The deal is similar to Leon, who moved to Old Trafford this summer after reaching a deal of up to £7 million in January.
Obi Martin and Haven, recruited from Arsenal, both entered the first team last season, but are currently back to the youth training academy. Mali youth international Conne is still recovering from a serious head injury suffered last month. Recently, Senegal U17 internationals Mohamed Dabo and Etienne Mendy have tried out at Manchester United, and the club's talent search work is still continuing.
Manchester United has a proud youth training tradition. In the 88 years since October 1937, Manchester United has a player trained by the club on its 4,328 consecutive games. But despite no doubt, young talents have long been the lifeblood of the club, from Busby Baby to Class 92, Manchester United doesn't always get the best benefits from young players who eventually leave the team.
The £40 million brought by Garnacho's transfer to Chelsea last month is the highest transfer fee Manchester United have received from youth training players so far. By creating a talent pool recruited from around the world, United hopes not only to continue to deliver talent to the first team, but also to make some solid investments in a way that is very similar to what Manchester City and Chelsea have in recent years.
has not changed much in some aspects. Manchester United has always had a strong scouting network and has provided a development path for young players at home and abroad. However, the move to sign Orosco is another example of more proactive identification and signing young players around the world. The emerging talent group is now a recognized group within the club, consisting of players discovered by Manchester United’s powerful scouting network and locally trained stars on the brink of the first team.
The group has exclusive locker rooms in the first team building at the Carrington Training Base, which reopened after a £50 million upgrade this summer, many of them will regularly train with the first team while continuing to compete for the youth training academy. And next summer, Orosco will join them. It may not be fair to label him as the next Kessetdo, but United believes it is a wise investment from any perspective.
