Amorim has said he does not want to be the one to end a record standing for over 4,000 matches
On Saturday, Manchester United managed to preserve their 88-year-old record of naming an academy player in every matchday squad, despite an injury to Kobbie Mainoo threatening to end the streak.
Mainoo has been the sole academy graduate since the departures of Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho, but he missed United’s match against Tottenham Hotspur after picking up a minor knock.
His absence could have broken a run stretching back to 1937, but manager Ruben Amorim drafted in 18-year-old midfielder Jack Fletcher to ensure the record continued for a 4,333rd consecutive match.
Jack, the son of former United midfielder and current academy coach Darren Fletcher, joined the club two years ago from Manchester City’s youth setup alongside his twin brother Tyler. He has been named on the first-team bench before but is yet to make his senior debut.
Amorim has said he does not want to be the one to end a record that feels like a big part of United’s identity.
“It’s really important,” said Amorim. “We are in a moment where if we cut corners to have success right away, it’s the wrong thing.
“There is something special in our club which has to be bulletproof, the way we behave, the way we feel about the club. We’re not going to stop with academy players. It doesn’t matter about the result.”
He added: “We have that record, we won’t break that record. And Jack is ready to help us. We will show that our academy is our future.”
United’s academy record began on October 30, 1937 when Tom Manley and Jack Wassall featured against Fulham. Since then, every United side for more than 4,000 matches has included at least one graduate of the youth system.
The club defines a homegrown player as one who joined before the age of 21 and spent at least three years in the academy, even if they had prior youth experience elsewhere.
Despite the record, minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe recently criticised the academy structure, saying its standards had “really slipped” in recent years and warning that his priority was to improve the setup rather than focus on a record for face value.
