Manchester United’s U19 side were held to a 1-1 draw against Roma in the UEFA Youth League, as the senior sides prepare to face off against each other later tonight.
Much like their senior counterparts, United’s youngsters have struggled in their opening matches. A comfortable 5-0 victory over Sabah offered an encouraging start, but successive defeats to Atletico Madrid and Como 1907 have seen them slip down the table into 21st place, only narrowly inside the positions required to reach the knockout phase.
Highly rated youngster Tynan Thompson stole the show for United. Making his seventh appearance for the side, the midfielder finally opened his account, finishing off a nicely worked move just before half-time to give United the advantage going into the break.
Thompson arrived at Old Trafford with considerable expectations after completing a move from Tottenham Hotspur for an initial fee of £4 million, potentially rising to as much as £8 million. His performances in last season’s UEFA Youth League were among the reasons he caught the eye of United’s scouting network. Spurs finished ninth in the group stage, scoring more goals than any other side with 28, while Thompson contributed seven himself.
Despite the London club suffering a 5-1 defeat to eventual Spanish champions Real Betis in the round of 32, his individual return left him as the competition’s joint sixth-highest scorer.
Having fallen behind, Roma’s youngsters pushed relentlessly for an equaliser throughout much of the second half. Despite some impressive defensive work from Daniel Armer and Albert Mills, United were unable to preserve their lead after a controversial penalty was awarded when the ball appeared to strike full-back Charlie Watson’s hand inside the area.
Antonio Arenas subsequently stepped up to level the score in the 70th minute, bringing the visitors level.
United boss Adam Lawrence would introduce 17-year-old Kai Rooney in the 84th minute, but the son of a United legend had little time to make a meaningful impact as the match petered out, with both sides settling for a point.
While United would have been desperate to avoid a third consecutive European defeat, they may ultimately view this as an opportunity missed. Lawrence’s side enjoyed lengthy spells of possession and showed enough attacking promise to suggest they could have taken all three points. However, their inability to find a second goal left them vulnerable, and a lack of composure in the final third ultimately proved costly.
With two fixtures left in the group stage against Sporting Club de Portugal and RB Leipzig, Lawrence will hope his players have enough firepower to push the club into the play-offs.
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