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se7en

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After former team-mates Jesse Lingard and Paul Pogba were reunited at Wembley on Tuesday night, we look at where Manchester United's 2011 FA Youth Cup winning team are now.

Four-and-a-half years on from lifting the FA Youth Cup with a 6-3 aggregate victory over Sheffield United in the final, Lingard and Pogba were on opposite sides in England's 2-0 win over France.


But what happened to the rest of the young United players who featured in that final? From Champions League to non-league, it's been something of a mixed bag…
Sam Johnstone

Goalkeeper Johnstone is one of only three of United's 2011 finalists still at the club. He seemed unlikely to get a chance after loan spells at Scunthorpe United, Walsall, Yeovil Town, Doncaster Rovers and Preston North End, but he was thrust into the first team during the David de Gea transfer saga. He featured in pre-season in the Spaniard's absence, and was on the bench for their first six games of the season.

Sean McGinty

McGinty holds the unwanted prize of being the last United player to have his contract terminated by Sir Alex Ferguson. The defender was shown the door after a show of ill-discipline on loan at Tranmere Rovers in 2013, and he left United without making a first-team appearance. Now plays for non-league Aldershot Town in the Conference.

Tom Thorpe

Thorpe captained United's FA Youth Cup winning side, but made his only senior United appearance as an 89th-minute substitute for Angel Di Maria during a 2-1 win over West Ham in September 2014. He was released this summer and joined Championship outfit Rotherham, where he has been used in defence and midfield and scored twice in seven appearances.

Michael Keane

Keane made the first of five senior appearances for United as a substitute in a League Cup game in October 2011, just a few months after the FA Youth Cup success, but he left the club in January of this year when a loan spell at Burnley was made permanent. Has featured regularly in the Championship this term after making 21 Premier League appearances for Sean Dyche's men last season.

Michele Fornasier

Former Italy youth international Fornasier left United in 2013, having never made a senior appearance in English football. The defender joined Serie B outfit Pescara this summer after two years on the books at Sampdoria, where he made 10 Serie A appearances in the 2013/14 campaign.

Ryan Tunnicliffe

Another youngster who had numerous spells on loan. The midfielder left United permanently for Fulham in 2014 having made just two appearances. He was reunited with former United coach Rene Meulensteen at Craven Cottage, but deemed surplus to requirements when the Dutchman was replaced by Felix Magath. He had loan spells at Wigan and Blackburn before returning to the Fulham fold this season.

Jesse Lingard

Injury curtailed Lingard's debut in Louis van Gaal's first game in charge last season, but he has come back into the fold after a string of loan moves. The winger scored on his first Premier League start of the season against West Brom and he earned a call-up to the England squad after injuries ruled out Jamie Vardy and Michael Carrick. He was an unused substitute against France.

Paul Pogba

The one that got away. Pogba was regarded as one of United's brightest young talents but he left the club for Juventus in 2012 after falling out with Sir Alex Ferguson over a lack of playing time. The Frenchman has emerged as one of the world's leading midfielders at Juve, where he has won three Serie A titles and reached the Champions League final last season. Now an established France international, Pogba is valued at around £70m.

Ravel Morrison

Morrison was described by Ferguson as one of the most naturally talented youngsters he ever signed, but United lost patience with him after a string of off-field misdemeanours blighted his progress. Sold to West Ham in 2012 and briefly looked like fulfilling his potential, but lost his place in the team and had his contract terminated after a reported falling out with Sam Allardyce. He signed for Lazio this summer, where he is struggling to make an impact.

Will Keane

Keane, twin brother of his former team-mate Michael, is still on United's books but doesn't appear to have much of a future at the club. He scored in both legs of the FA Youth Cup final but his only senior appearance to date came as a late substitute in a 3-2 defeat to Blackburn back in December 2011. The forward had spells at Wigan, QPR and Sheffield Wednesday and is currently on loan at Preston North End, where he has scored once in 14 appearances this season.

Gyliano van Velzen

Lanky Dutch striker Van Velzen signed his first professional contract at United in 2012 after joining on youth terms two years previously, but he was released in 2013 after a loan spell at feeder club Royal Antwerp in Belgium. He initially signed for FC Utrecht in the Eredivisie but now plays for FC Volendam in the Dutch second division.

John Cofie

Cofie was released by United in 2013 without making a senior appearance. He had brief spells with Barnsley, Norwegian side Molde and Crawley Town, and was most recently spotted on trial with Conference outfit Wrexham.

Larnell Cole

Cole was prolific at youth level but only made one senior appearance for United before joining Fulham at the same time as Tunnicliffe. He is currently on loan at Shrewsbury Town in League One.

Tyler Blackett

Defender Blackett broke into the United first team in 2014/15 amid a defensive injury crisis. He earned praise from Louis van Gaal and played 12 games in total, but he has not featured since scoring an own goal against Arsenal towards the end of last season and is now on loan at Celtic.

Manchester United's 2011 FA Youth Cup final winning team: Where are they now?
 
especially Cole looked made for the senior team imo but obviously I judged him wrong.
 
Funny thing about that team was that Lingard wasn't even a regular - van Velzen generally started ahead of him on the left. A midfield trio of Pogba, Tunnicliffe and Morrison just infront of them is as good as you're likely to get at youth level.

Used to get more of a buzz watching that youth side than most of our first team sides in recent years, particularly Morrison. The flip side of that being the incredible disappointment seeing Morrison and Pogba leaving. I was more disappointed about Morrison to be honest and probably still am despite what Pogba has gone on to do. Morrison was on another level again in my view and was so exciting to watch. I'd have paid good money to watch him week in week out for United's first team.
 
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