Jacob Devaney impressed Carrick despite playing in an unfamiliar role
Manchester United coach Michael Carrick praised young player Jacob Devaney for his performance in an unfamiliar center-back role during a pre-season match against Wrexham. Despite the team's loss, Carrick highlighted the control and quality shown by the academy players in the second half.
Why it matters
Pre-season matches are critical for managers to evaluate young talent and test tactical versatility before the competitive season begins.
Jacob Devaney impressed Carrick despite playing in an unfamiliar role The Peoples Person Sat, July 18, 2026 at 10:40 PM UTC · 3 min read Manchester United may have lost their opening pre-season fixture against Wrexham on Saturday, but head coach Michael Carrick was pleased with some of the things he saw.
The head coach picked two different teams in each half, with the seniors playing the first 45 minutes, a half which saw a couple of interesting positional tweaks . The second half XI was comprised entirely of academy wonderkids.
During his post-match interview with MUTV , Carrick claimed he felt his team had more control of proceedings in the second half.
“I was really pleased with the second-half team. I thought they controlled the game really well against a team that is not easy to play against.
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