Why Don't Supporters Give Youth A Chance?

Why are some Manchester United supporters so trigger happy shooting down emerging talent from the youth academy set up? Why are some so quick to dismiss youth, insisting on bringing in overseas players instead?

Expectations have been set high since the influx of the famous class of '92, an extraordinary talented set of players who come through United's famous youth development who, like the Busby Babes, shaped the way our club is today, chapters in the history of Manchester United Football Club.

Ryan Giggs, David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Gary Neville, Phill Neville and Nicky Butt were the six who Sir Alex Ferguson put so much faith in, and it paid off hugely as United dominated the 90s with a backbone of youthful homegrown talent, but are supporters now too quick to judge today's talent because they try to compare them to the the '92 graduates? 

It's something I have been thinking about for a while, supporters who write off young English players when Sir Alex is clearly trying to bed them in to the first team set up, it's something that goes on at clubs all over this country. 

Since the class of '92 the names Wes Brown, John O'Shea, Jonny Evans and Darren Fletcher instantly spring to mind as products of the youth development system who attracted unfair criticism, some supporters wrote them off as 'not being good enough', also comments like 'He's will never make it here, he's not United class' could be heard shouted out from some sections of the terraces, I wonder what their opinions are on them players now?

Recently, Manchester born youngster and lifelong supporter of the club Danny Welbeck has come in for the same fickle taunts and comments that the Old Trafford Kretins love to dish out, but why? 

He's a player who is clearly not the finished article, but you can see that with continued guidance and development he is going to be a class act, he's a player who wears his hear on his sleeve and will give everything for the club that he clearly loves, he's living a supporters dream, playing for the club he supports.

More concerning is that supporters seem to think that because the club has not paid a fee for the player, they should be replaced by an overseas player who they are willing to put more support and encouragement into, I really don't understand that? Why do they lose patience so easily with players that are trying to break into the first team?

For arguments sake, let's just say that Danny Welbeck did not come through the United youth development scheme, he was purchased from a Brazilian team for a fee of £15million, and we change his name to Daniel Welbeckinho, I guarantee that some supporters would view him totally differently because a fee was paid and because of his nationality, those supporters who have already wrote Welbeck off, would now claim that Brazilian Welbeckinho needs 'time to adjust to our style of play' or say that 'he will come good', 'he just needs a run of games', 'it's Fergie's fault for playing him out of position'.

A prime example of a player who gets that type of affection from fans is Anderson. Signed for a fee believed to be around the £30million mark, he's had 5 seasons at Old Trafford now, and after constantly disappointing and showing no signs of improvement season after season, he gets the 'next season will be his season' wild card from those on the terraces, Danny Welbeck or Tom Cleverley would not get the same patience from supporters, why? The two English based players will always give 110% commitment, something I would sadly have to question about Brazilian Anderson.

Anderson's Manchester United  career could be compared to a game of Monopoly, for 5 seasons now he has made his way around the board contributing very little but collecting £200 each time he passes go. This is a metaphor, he obviously collects a lot more than that!

Another English based player who has been plagued by criticism is Michael Carrick, he was not a product of the United youth set  and was purchased for a fee of £18million, but he seems an easy target when things are not going well, although my opinion is that he would be one of the first names on my team sheet. 

Again, like the Welbeck name and nationally change thing, if for arguments sake we had signed Carrick from Spain, and his name was Miguel Xavick, I believe supporters would embrace his performances and say that he 'oozes class', it's wrong but it does seem that some people are highly critical and far too quick when assessing English talent, it's seems there is a strange obsession with overseas players.

You only have to look back to that famous assessment by Alan Hansen in 1995 when he claimed "You can't win anything with kids", Manchester United went on to win the double and dominate English football also achieving success in Europe too.

@KevinAshford7

Will The Real Danny Welbeck Please Stand Up

Take a bow Danny Welbeck, you deserve all the credit you receive after a sensational performance in the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium against the famous Real Madrid, the real Danny Welbeck stood up, this was a statement to all those supporters who have questioned his performances and lack of goals.

It was the biggest game of Manchester born Welbeck's career, his selection baffled a few people prior to kick off, but it was plain to see early on that he was selected to do a job, and didn't the boy do well?

His endless running had the Real Madrid back line on their toes, they didn't get a moments peace as Welbeck chased down everything and constantly asked questions of the Spanish champions, a friend of mine who I watched the match with referred to him as a "nuisance"! I'm sure that would have been the verdict on the Longsight lad from the Madrid defenders too!

Welbeck has come in for some unfair criticism recently from supporters and the media due to his goal scoring record, what do you expect from a player who is being played out of position on a regular basis? Hes covered the left and right side of the midfield and hes a striker. Welbeck is adapting and changing his style of play because he simply wants to play for the team he grew up supporting, his willingness to adapt makes him a fantastic asset to the squad.

Supporters can be so fickle, Welbeck comes in for some harsh criticism on social media and Manchester United forums, last night proved that he is capable of a big performance at the highest level. His team mate Javier Hernandez knows how to find the net, but Welbecks all round game is far more superior to the Mexicans, speed, hold up and link up play, pace, and he's not bad in the air either!

In a world where supporters and managers are obsessed with bringing in over seas players to our Premier League, how refreshing is it that a product of the Manchester United youth academy should grab the majority of the headlines following the 1-1 with Real Madrid? A player that is United through and through and would probably run through a brick wall if Sir Alex Ferguson asked him too!

The Santiago Bernabéu experience is part of Welbecks development as a player, the confidence he will take from that performance will give him more belief in himself.

What a time to start showing your quality too, at a time when United are chasing three trophies like they famously achieved in 1999, with a strikeforce that has been compared to the current crop of attacking options.

@KevinAshford7

Could Sir Alex Have Saved Gazza From Self Destruction?

Gascoigne pictured before leaving for Rehab

The shocking images of Paul Gascoigne on the front of this weeks tabloids portrayed an ex football genius who has sadly struggled to cope with life after the beautiful game.

Arguably the most gifted English player of all time is now in America undergoing rehabilitation for an alcohol addiction that is threatening to bring the former players life to an end prematurely.

If Gazza had been protected better and looked after when he hung his boots up, could he have been saved from attempting to self destruct? Would Sir Alex Ferguson have been able to keep him on the straight and narrow if the player had signed for Manchester United in 1988, after verbally agreeing to join the club before deciding to join Tottenham Hotspur because they offered to buy his mother and father a house?

Gazza has never shied away from the fact that hanging his boots up was the start of his problems, once adored by millions, he turned to alcohol to try and achieve the same fix of euphoria that he got from playing football, sadly this was the start of his decline.

Many believe that Gazza should have been offered some kind of role within the Football Association to keep him busy. He has so much experience of the game and talent that he should have been able to pass on his experiences of his playing time to the next generation of footballers coming through, sadly this never happened, but would it have happened if Gazza had chosen Manchester instead of London?

Choosing Manchester in 1988 would have meant that Sir Alex Ferguson would have been in charge of managing the player, a manager who has proved over his 26 year spell with the club that he has the credentials to man manage superstar talents who have diverse personalities, could Sir Alex have provided a long term structure for the player that would have seen the ex genius still working at Manchester United's Carrington training complex in a coaching role? Would he be an ambassador for the Reds working regularly on Uniteds MUTV channel keeping his mind focused?

I'm obviously talking hypothetically, but I believe that there is no doubt that Gazza would have been a success at Old Trafford, his spells at Tottenham, Lazio and Glasgow Rangers have proved that.

Manchester United would have been a fantastic fit for Paul Gascoigne, the supporters would have adored him, the manager would have acted as a father figure towards him and most importantly, the club would not have turned their back on him when his time as a player had ended like the FA did. A player who gave so much for England should have been looked after far better when you consider the problems he has faced.

The Paul Gascoigne situation is very similar to that of the late George Best, both were a genius with a football at their feet who also had an alcohol addiction, lets hope that Gazza can fight his demons and his self destructing ways before its too late.The recent shocking images of the former player, who looks a lot older than the 45 years that his birth certificate displays, are not the images we want to remember him by. 

Hopefully he is back on the straight and narrow soon and we can replace the recent alarming images of him with past iconic ones, like his eyes welling up in Italy at World Cup 1990 following a booking that would have ruled him out of the final if England had progressed.

I can't help but wonder if things would have turned out different for Paul Gascoigne in the long term if he had made the switch to Manchester United and worked under Sir Alex Ferguson, we will never know.

@Kevinashford7