The four players you probably forgot are still at Manchester United
The MEN has taken a deeper look at four Man United players that you likely forgot still represented the team.
With two goalkeepers on the bench against Fulham, Erik ten Hag demonstrated Manchester United’s lack of depth in the squad.
It’s not the first time this season that Ten Hag has put two goalkeepers on the bench, and the Dutchman will be eager to make more of his own additions in the summer while also being conscious that some players may need to depart the team.
There are several players at United who you may have forgotten were still with the team, despite the lack of squad depth.
With two goalkeepers on the bench against Fulham, Erik ten Hag demonstrated Manchester United’s lack of depth in the squad.
It’s not the first time this season that Ten Hag has put two goalkeepers on the bench, and the Dutchman will be eager to make more of his own additions in the summer while also being conscious that some players may need to depart the team.
There are several players at United who you may have forgotten were still with the team, despite the lack of squad depth.
1. Born in Manchester 20-year-old Teden Mengi was identified as a top prospect in the academy at a young age, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer gave him his senior debut in August 2020 against LASK in the Europa League.
Mengi’s future appeared good, but since making his debut, football has been cruel to him. The defender has had to deal with numerous injuries, which led to the termination of his promising loan stint with Derby County in 2020–21.
Mengi made an even bigger impression while on loan at Birmingham City last season, but history repeated itself and the loan was terminated once more owing to a persistent hamstring problem, preventing him from gaining more first-team experience.
Mengi has just played for the U21s and is scheduled to go out on loan in January now that he is fully fit.
2. Brandon Williams
22-year-old Brandon Willams spent last season’s loan at Norwich in the hopes of challenging Diogo Dalot for the right-back spot. Unfortunately, Willams missed the entire preseason due to injury, and his fitness concerns have persisted into this year’s campaign.
The academy graduate was recently on the verge of making a comeback, but he is still injured and wasn’t selected for the match against Fulham.
In the summer of 2024, Williams’ contract will end.
3. Phil Jones
Prior to Ralf Rangnick playing him against Wolves in January of this year, Phil Jones’ final match for United was against Tranmere in the FA Cup in 2020. The center-back played admirably in that game at Old Trafford, but he hasn’t played since.
Jones was substituted off during that outing against Liverpool in a lopsided loss at Anfield in April. Jones has drawn interest from the Championship over the past few years, and he is currently in the final year of his contract.
4. Axel Tuanzebe
Axel Tuanzebe, a fellow academy graduate, spent last season on loan at Napoli, but his time there was a complete failure for him.
Shortly after moving to Naples, Napoli curiously opted not to include Tuanzebe in their roster for the Europa League. Over the course of six months, he only made two appearances for the club, totaling 130 minutes of play.
Tuanzebe went on the summer preseason tour of Thailand and Australia with the first team, but owing to an injury, he hasn’t played a single minute this year.
The 25-year-United old’s contract is up in June.
