Pranav Nair
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer equals incredible youth record set by Sir Matt Busby
By bringing on youngster Teden Mengi for Eric Bailly against LASK, Ole Gunnar Solskajer wrote his name into history books. As confirmed by the club’s official site, he equaled Sir Matt Busby’s incredible Manchester United record that has stood for 67 years.
The 18-year-old became the club’s eighth debutant this season to come from the United Academy. This a tally that was equaled only once before – under Sir Matt Busby in the 1952/53 season.
The United legend had seen the likes of John Doherty, Duncan Edwards, Bill Foulkes, Eddie Lewis, Les Olive, David Pegg, Jackie Scott, and Dennis Viollet all make their bow during that campaign.
The likes of Doherty, Lewis, Olive, and Scott all failed to make a lasting impact. However, the other four went on to play a key role in the club’s title-winning sides in 1956 and 1957.
The current crop may or may not have the same impact as that legendary side. But they have taken their first steps in what could be a long and successful career in Red.
Of the eight, six of them made their debuts in a single match. This came in a Europa League clash in Kazakhstan in November.
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Youngsters Di’Shon Bernard, Ethan Laird, and Dylan Levitt all started, while Ethan Galbraith, Largie Ramazani, and D’Mani Mellor came off the bench.
They followed in the footsteps of Brandon Williams who made his debut a month earlier. Now Mengi has joined the ranks of the promising company.
This incredible record was not equaled by even illustrious names such as Sir Alex Ferguson, Louis van Gaal, and Jose Mourinho.
All three gave six players their debuts in the same season, Ferguson to his credit did it on four different occasions.
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Solskjaer’s willingness to put his faith in youth is in line with the club’s ethos. Hopefully, a number of these players will go on to become household names in the coming years. Under Solskjaer, they are in capable hands indeed.
With potentially three more games to go, it remains to be seen if Solskjaer will put his faith in any other youngster.
