Manchester United’s development physiotherapist is certain young players will continue to progress into the first team with Danny Welbeck set to face his former club.
The England international has been thriving in his favoured striking role at Arsenal and has almost matched last season’s goal tally already.
Les Parry, who won the Medical & Sports Science Professional crown at the North West Football Awards on Tuesday, is convinced United’s academy will continue to produce talented youngsters.
“We’ve got some really good Under 21s, you’ve already seen a few of them performing in the first team this year which is great,” the former Tranmere Rovers manager told MM.
“We’ve got a couple of Under 18s as well that won’t be far away – the likes of Marcus Rashford who’s a special talent.
“Younger than him we’ve got a lad called RoShaun Williams who will play for our first team at some point.
“He’s only Under 16 at the moment and he plays for our Under 18s and the England Under 18s – he’s definitely one to watch for the future.”
The likes of Tyler Blackett and James Wilson have featured for the three-time European champions in the Premier League already this term having progressed through the ranks.
Manchester-born Rashford meanwhile has reportedly been attracting the interest of rivals Manchester City as his prodigious potential is impressing would-be suitors.
Williams, who has been with United from the age of nine, broke Olympic gold medallist Darren Campbell’s 100-metre schoolboy record last August.
Parry meanwhile, who works with the Under 21 squad mainly, said that the treatment room at Old Trafford had been busier than normal this season.
“The lads above me have been busy but that’s what they get paid for at the end of the day,” he added.
“You don’t want your physiotherapy department to be overrun but it’s the way injuries happen – sometimes you have none and sometimes you have ten.
“The new manager has been good, people have got an idea about him from the way he comes across – inside the club it’s been fantastic.”
Parry also worked alongside Louis van Gaal’s predecessors after joining the backroom staff from Accrington Stanley in January 2013.
He was delighted to receive the award so early on in his new role and admitted that he only came along for ‘the free meal and to congratulate someone else’.
“I was actually nominated for manager of the year three years ago and then I lost my job a couple of months later so I hope the same doesn’t happen again.”
Main image courtesy of Sky Sports via YouTube, with thanks.
