MANCHESTER UNITED have been fuelled by teen spirit this season.
The likes of Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo have become Erik ten Hag’s go-to stars.
And their game time means Man Utd rank best among the Premier League’s top six for minutes handed to teenagers this season.
The Red Devils have fielded teens for a staggering 3,637 minutes so far this campaign.
This is almost three times as much as the rest of the league’s top six teams; Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham and Aston Villa – with 1,245 minutes – COMBINED.
Garnacho 19, is Man Utd’s fifth most played star this season with 1,988 minutes, with 18-year-old Mainoo ranking ninth with 1,358 minutes.
READ MORE IN FOOTBALL
The figure has been supplemented by fellow Carrington stars Willy Kambwala, Omari Forson and Dan Gore, all 19.
That trio have amassed 291 minutes between them, with Kambwala earning 224 of these with opportunities coming amid Man Utd’s injury crisis.
Fans were pleased home grown players were being given opportunities despite the teams struggles this season, with one fan saying: “Glad to see the academy boys coming through.
“One of the things Ten Hag has done right this season.”
Most read in Football
CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO WELCOME OFFERS
A second said: “The future is definitely looking good.”
Another said: “That’s why we need to keep hold on Erik ten Hag. Youth flourishes with ten hag which shows us the promising future. Soon all these youngsters will be key assets for us.”
A fourth added: “Ten Hag is cooking something for the future.”
More academy prospects including Shea Lacey, Harry Amass, Habeeb Ogunneye and Amir Ibragimov have trained with the first team this season.
Man City rank second among the top six with 698 minutes.
However, while Man Utd’s are spread across five stars, all of the minutes handed to teens by Pep Guardiola have been given solely to Rico Lewis.
Unai Emery’s Aston Villa rank third in the list with 360 minutes, with 346 minutes being given to Jhon Duran – who turned 20 in December – and 14 minutes to 18-year-old Omari Kellyman.
Liverpool, whose recent successes have been spearheared in large part thanks to academy stars such as Trent Alexander-Arnold, have handed 117 minutes to teens this campaign.
This figure is spread across five players; Bobby Clark (89 minutes), Ben Doak (14 minutes), Jayden Danns (nine minutes), James McConnell (four minutes) and Kaide Gordon (one minute).
North London outfit Tottenham come in fifth with 50 minutes handed to Alejo Veliz, – who turned 20 in September – three minutes to Jamie Donley and three minutes to Dane Scarlett – who turned 20 in March.
Ranking bottom of the list is Arsenal with 14 minutes handed to Ethan Nwaneri against West Ham this season, the only teen recipient of Premier League minutes at the Gunners this season.
The Hale End produced 17-year-old was tied down to a professional contract last month.
However, Man Utd are not top of the league when it comes to the full Premier League table.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Instead, the team who have handed the most minutes to teens this season is Brighton with a whopping 4,588, with Man Utd coming in second to the Seagulls.
Relegation-threatened Burnley rank third with 2,538 minutes, with Bournemouth (2,363 minutes) in fourth and Sheffield United (1,822) in fifth.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
