A testament to United’s academy: Two Carrington graduates tipped to make first senior international starts

In what would come as a significant milestone and testament to the success of Manchester United’s academy, two Carrington graduates have been tipped to make their first senior international starts this week.

The first is Kobbie Mainoo, who only made his England debut last Saturday evening in an off-the-bench cameo against five-time world champions Brazil. He was called up to the squad for the first time last week after initially being named in the Under-21s which, at the time, was a promotion from the Under-19s.

You can only presume that Gareth Southgate was left thoroughly wowed by what he saw of the 18-year-old throughout United’s FA Cup triumph over Liverpool, as he then decided that Mainoo would bypass the youth team and make the leap straight to the seniors. 

Numerous outlets have reported that the midfielder is in line to make his first start tonight due to an injury to Jordan Henderson; the Three Lions take on Belgium in a friendly at Wembley, with kick-off penned in for 7.45pm.

Garnacho to make maiden Argentina start

Elsewhere, Lionel Scaloni is planning to grant Alejandro Garnacho, 19, his first start when the world champions take on Costa Rica in the early hours of Wednesday morning (2.50am). 

The prolific winger has earned four caps for his country since making his debut back in June 2023. His latest outing, against El Salvador, marked his longest appearance yet after he featured for 45 minutes in Argentina’s 3-0 victory.