Harley Emsden-James has officially joined Manchester United from Southampton and the exciting teenager has sent his first message after the deal.
Like many of Europe’s top clubs today, Manchester United have placed a growing emphasis on long-term planning, which has led to the recruitment of numerous teenage talents over the past year.
Several of these young prospects have been brought in from overseas, while others have arrived from fellow English academies, including Ayden Heaven and Chido Obi, both of whom were signed from Arsenal.
The latest addition to United’s youth ranks is 16-year-old centre-back Harley Emsden-James, who joins from Southampton in a £1 million deal.
After an agreement was reached earlier this summer, Emsden-James officially became a United player this week as he prepares for life in the Academy at Carrington.
Emsden-James sends 25-word message after United transfer
Emsden-James is a highly-rated defender and is expected to come into the Under-18s at United, managed by club legend Darren Fletcher.
The youngster is clearly excited to get started and has explained how it is a ‘dream come true’ to join United as part of a 25-word message on his social media pages.
Accompanied by images of him at Carrington, Emsden-James wrote on Instagram: “Proud and grateful to sign for Manchester United. A dream come true and the start of an exciting new chapter. Can’t wait to get started.”
He will be part of an exciting Under-18s group, with other talents such as JJ Gabriel and Louie Bradbury set to be involved this season.
Their season will kick off on 16 August with a game against Everton’s Academy coming up first, and Fletcher will be hoping to guide the team to another strong campaign.
United also focusing on loans this summer
While United are focused on securing talents to bring to the club, it has also been noticed how they seem to be prioritising loans this summer too.
This has been an area where mistakes have been made in the recent past, with poor loan spells impacting a youngster’s development.
With Jonny Evans being appointed as the Head of Loans and Pathways this summer, we have already seen seven United academy talents head out on temporary moves, with the latest being Radek Vitek to Bristol City.
The Reds appear to be getting these loan moves done early, and they will hope that it contributes to their young stars having more successful periods away from the club.
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