Manchester United Academy Faces Change as Youngsters Consider Arsenal Move

Manchester United’s academy is bracing for change, with two of its more seasoned youngsters edging towards moves to a Premier League rival.

James Scanlon and Habeeb Ogunneye, both on the fringes of senior football last season, are in talks with Arsenal as they look for the next step in their careers.

Scanlon, a winger, and Ogunneye, a full-back, spent last term on loan in League Two with Swindon Town and Newport County respectively. Their game time was limited, but at 19 and 20 there is a firm belief they still carry significant upside and room to grow.

That growth now looks increasingly likely to happen away from Old Trafford.

Neither player featured in Michael Carrick’s pre-season plans, despite United naming 15 academy products in the 25-man squad for the opening friendly against Wrexham in Helsinki on 18 July. For two players with established Under-21 experience, the omission was telling.

Ogunneye did start for United’s Under-21s in a pre-season outing against Altrincham on 31 July, a reminder of his standing at that level. Scanlon, who already has 24 caps for Gibraltar and played in May’s Premier League 2 play-off final defeat to Brighton, missed that game with a minor injury.

The movement is unlikely to stop there. Other United youngsters with substantial Under-21 minutes and loan spells on their CVs are also expected to assess their options before the transfer window closes on 1 September.

United’s academy has long been a pathway. This summer, for several of its older prospects, that path may now run through North London and beyond.