Kobbie Mainoo had a message for Ethan Wheatley following Saturday’s 9-1 thrashing of Liverpool by Man United Under-18s.
Ethan Wheatley was one of the stars as Manchester United U18s thrashed their Liverpool counterparts (Image: John Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
The Manchester United Under-18s thrashed Liverpool Under-18s 9-1 on Saturday, providing their senior counterparts with some extra pre-match motivation.
All eyes will be on Old Trafford this afternoon as Erik ten Hag’s team welcomes Jurgen Klopp’s team in a match that will significantly impact both the race for the Premier League title and the fight for European qualification, but United’s youth have garnered attention for their accomplishments.
In the U18 Premier League North this season, Adam Lawrence’s team has dominated play and showed no mercy when they went to Kirkby to play their rivals. They jumped out to a 4-0 lead in less than twenty-five minutes thanks to goals from Ethan Williams, James Scanlon, and Ethan Wheatley.
Liverpool pulled one back on minute thirty-two, but that was little comfort as United mercilessly dismantled the home team for the remaining minutes. Following the restart, a 12-minute spurt of goals, which included Wheatley’s third, dashed any chance of a comeback. Two more goals were added in the final minutes.
The outcome moves Lawrence’s team up to the top of their youth league by 13 points, and Kobbie Mainoo took notice. Being eighteen years old, the midfielder represents Ten Hag’s first team above his years, having advanced from the club’s Under-18s to the Under-21s in January 2023.
The recent England debutante was observed in the Instagram post’s comment section by hat-trick hero Wheatley. The Under-18 player captioned a photo of herself with the message, “Enjoyed that one,” to which Mainoo, obviously impressed, replied, “Tuff.”
If performances keep up, Wheatley might eventually follow in Mainoo’s footsteps because United’s youth production line appears to be promising. Harry Amass, who is scheduled to be included in Sunday’s Premier League squad against Liverpool, is the next expected to get his chance.
