Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has promised to slot in at least two young players from the academy for their Carabao fixture against Chelsea.
The fourth-round tie will be played at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night, and Ole says defender Brandon Williams and midfielder James Garner have proved their worth and therefore deserves some more minutes with the senior team.
“So we’ve not made a decision on who is going to play [at Chelsea] but you’ll probably see the two of them [Garner and Williams].”
A number of other names from the Academy, such as Mason Greenwood, Tahith Chong and Angel Gomes have been given increased responsibility by Solskjaer this season.
And with the likes of Luke Shaw, Nemanja Matic and Axel Tuanzebe sidelined, the Norwegian may have to call upon them again when we go up against Frank Lampard’s side, who have also made headlines for their own youthfulness this season.
“We know it’s been tough and we know that we’ve asked a lot of them because Paul, Luke, Anthony – there’s loads of other players that have been injured,“ added the boss.
“For us, the youngsters have stepped up in a difficult period. But in the end, they’ll be stronger for it.”
On the other hand, Ole has praised the performances of Fred and Andreas Pereira in Paul Pogba’s absence, suggesting the two Brazilians can fill the gap left by Pogba.
“Fred will probably take Paul’s position for a while now and he’s been brilliant for us, but Andreas has grown the last few games,” Solskjaer added.
“His energy and running, chasing – he’s a different sort of no.10, he can play also in the central positions.
“So I’m delighted for Andreas – great professional, great attitude. He does his job to the best of his abilities.”