United’s brightest talents It was only right that on the day Manchester United ended a mostly miserable season on a positive note, their match-winners should be two academy graduates who have brightened up the gloom throughout.
Even before Saturday’s victory in the FA Cup final, Alejandro
Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo were at the centre of one of the most memorable images of United’s season.
The sight of Garnacho, Mainoo and Rasmus Hojlund sitting together
on an advertising hoarding, celebrating Manchester United’s second in a 3-0 win over West Ham United in February with arms around each other’s shoulders, was described as a window into the club’s future.
Yet it was also a vision of its present. Those three players — then 18, 19 and 20 years old — ended the Premier League season among the top eight in United’s squad for minutes played.
In all competitions, Garnacho and Hojlund broke the 3,000-minute
barrier. Only Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot had more time on the pitch among outfield players at United.