Shea Lacey is one of the most exciting talents within Manchester United’s academy and one of his coaches believe that he could become an ‘elite player’ at Old Trafford.
Manchester United’s Academy is overflowing with promising young prospects, capturing the attention of fans eager to see who will emerge as the next big name.
While 14-year-old JJ Gabriel has recently stolen the headlines with his performances for the Under-18s, it was Shea Lacey who first commanded the spotlight. The talented left-footed winger wowed both supporters and coaches with his superb close control and technical flair.
Now 18, Lacey caught the eye during Ruben Amorim’s first-team post-season tour of Asia last summer, though an injury ruled him out of the following pre-season campaign.
Despite a difficult spell with injuries over the past two years, he appears to be turning a corner this season and has already started to impress Amorim with his performances at Carrington.
What Lacey does in training that proves he can become ‘elite’
Lacey’s technical ability is no joke and something that has already impressed those in the first-team squad at United, but that is not his only trait.
Many skilful players do not enjoy learning the tactical side of the game and that can impact their ability to fit into the modern day game at the top level. Lacey is not like that.
Phil Jevons, former Everton academy graduate and EFL veteran, has worked closely with Lacey as a coach and explained how the United youngster is has genuine curiosity about the tactical element in training sessions.
“He approaches each session with genuine curiosity about how to get better, which is often the difference between good players and elite players,” Jevons told MailSport.
“In every session Shea demonstrated that hunger to improve. He wasn’t satisfied with just executing drills – he wanted to understand the ‘why’ behind the work and how it transfers to match situations. That mentality, combined with the coaching he’s getting at United, is exactly what creates top players.”
Amorim discusses United academy
While many fans believe that the Academy is in its best state in years, co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe suggested that major improvements need to be made in that aspect of the club.
Amorim himself has suggested that the club are aiming to improve the academy, which is ‘really important’ in the modern game with Financial Fair Play.
“I think we can always improve,” said Amorim. “I’m not the best guy [to ask] because I’m here for a year and our results are not being so good, so I’m not going to be the guy that is going to say that the Academy is not in a good shape.
“What I know is that, especially nowadays, with the [Financial] Fair Play, with the feeling of the club, the Academy is really important. We need to take care of that.
“We need also to give the right conditions for all the people that we have here to do a better job because, sometimes, it’s not just you are doing a bad job, but we need to see what kind of conditions they have to do a great job.
“We are paying attention to that. We are bringing people [in]. We are always in contact with Travis [Binnion], with all the kids, trying to bring the right kids for the training, trying to make that relationship with the Academy. So, I think if you look at our club, we are trying to improve. We have a lot to improve, not just in the Academy, but in all aspects of our club.”
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