Manchester United Wonderkids in the Premier League era and what happened next

Ryan Giggs – HIT

Giggs’ historic career at Manchester United can be attributed to one man: Sir Alex Ferguson. He had heard of the extreme youngster who was causing a storm at the Manchester City School of Excellence, and traveled to Cardiff on Giggs’ 14th birthday in 1987, offering him the opportunity to change.

The rest is history. Giggs made his first team debut before Premier Leagu was founded in 1991 at the age of 17, and over the next 23 years he accumulated 963 appearances and 168 goals on the way to accumulating 13 titles from the Premier League, four FA Cups, three League Cups and two Champions Leagues, among other honors.

Ravel Morrison – MISS

The player Wayne Rooney described as better than Paul Pogba, Morrison turned pro on his 17th birthday, making his debut later that year. Problems off the field hampered his progress and he left United in 2012. Now 27, the midfielder has never made more than 30 appearances for a single club, a real disappointment for the player Ferguson thought was “the best boy ever. you will never see, “according to Rio Ferdinand.

Adnan Januzaj – MISS

Signing for United at the age of 16, the Belgian international made his first-team debut two years later at Community Shield 2013, replacing Robin van Persie in the second half. However, the winger never made a place of his own, making 50 appearances during his time at the club, scoring just five goals before his 2017 move to Real Sociedad. Now 25, he has settled much better in Spain, with more games and goals to his credit in the past two and a half seasons than he did in his United career.

Michael Keane – MISS

A Manchester boy who rose in rank, his performance in his full first-team debut in a League Cup tie was hailed by captain Darren Fletcher as “fantastic.” But he made just one start in the Premier League in his four years as a professional at Old Trafford, and ultimately decided to pursue his career elsewhere. Although it was not a success at United, it has established itself as a solid midfielder first for Burnley and now for Everton, and has also made its way into England’s senior team.

Marcus Rashford – HIT

The striker broke into the first-team squad at age 18, becoming the youngest goalscorer in United history in European competition when he twice struck Midtjylland in the Europa League in February 2016. A few days later, Rashford made his Premier League debut, and did the same again, making a parenthesis against Arsenal. When he scored the winner against Manchester City in March 2016, he became the youngest scorer in the Manchester Premier League derby at 18 years 141 days.