Jason Wilcox ‘keeping close eye’ on Man United academy star who stunned scouts

Jason Wilcox is “keeping a close eye” on one Manchester United academy star who is stunning scouts and coaches with his performances.

Gabriele Biancheri was one of Manchester United’s most dangerous youth team forwards last season, though Ethan Wheatley and Ethan Williams often received more attention.

Biancheri scored 14 goals in 26 appearances last term, with many of those appearances coming from the bench.

Now, the Welsh forward is poised for a breakout season with the Under-18s as United aim to defend their league title.

In the opening league match against rivals Manchester City, Biancheri netted a classic striker’s goal from a low cross, and he repeated the feat coming off the bench for the Under-21s against Blackburn last Friday.

The talented youngster also scored twice in a Premier League Cup match against Leicester City U18s and added another goal in a league game against Liverpool U18s over the weekend.

Biancheri consistently positions himself well, showing a natural striker’s instinct to be in the right place at the right time. The 17-year-old excels at scoring inside the box, often with his first or second touch as he connects with crosses.

While United have many promising talents in their youth setup at Carrington, Biancheri is one of the few in the Under-18s or above who possesses this innate goal-scoring ability.

A report from MailSport explains that the club’s technical director Jason Wilcox is among those who have kept a close eye on Biancheri. He was in attendance to watch the striker score twice against Everton U18s at the end of last season.

Wilcox was the academy director at Manchester City before joining the club. He knows all about talented youth stars who can make it to the top level. During his time at the Etihad Stadium, he played an important role in promoting the likes of Oscar Bobb, Phil Foden, and Cole Palmer.

The young Welshman has stunned with his performances in games and training, and the report states that coaches and scouts are “salivating” at his potential.

Like many young stars at Carrington, Biancheri has benefited from experience training with Erik ten Hag’s first-team squad on occasion.

He will be hoping to continue impressing throughout the season after starting the campaign extremely strong.

Make sure to follow UtdDistrict on X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok to never miss out on any of our Manchester United content. Our podcast, What the Devil?, is released every Thursday at 6 pm (BST) on the United View YouTube channel.