Man Utd youngster Shea Lacey could receive further first-team minutes in the final part of the Premier League season.
Shea Lacey pictured in first-team training.(Image: 2026 Manchester United FC)
Michael Carrick has admitted he would “love” to give Manchester United academy players first-team minutes in the final two matches of the season. United wrapped up Champions League qualification with three games to spare.
Carrick made five changes to face Sunderland at the Stadium of Light last weekend, and more changes could be on the cards for the final games of the campaign against Nottingham Forest and Brighton.
Those fixtures have been earmarked as chances for Carrick to give academy players the chance to impress. However, the Brighton game on the final day of the season is more realistic because the Under-21s were in action in the Premier League 2 play-off final on Saturday night.
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The U21s fielded a strong team in that final, ruling out the young players involved in that game from playing for the first-team against Forest at Old Trafford.
Shea Lacey started for the U21s in the Premier League 2 play-off final, for example. Lacey now trains with the first team on a day-to-day basis and is seen as someone who could contribute to the senior squad next term.
When asked if Lacey, or other academy players, could play for the first-team before the end of the season, Carrick said: “100%, it’s something we would love to happen and not so much, just… I’m not talking about just Shea [Lacey] with what I think in terms of getting younger players involved in, and they’re heavily involved in and around the group, they have been all the time anyway, but the fact that the game is Saturday for them, they’ll be heavily involved in that, and I think they should be.
“And then, obviously, of course, the week after leading to the Brighton game, we’ll reassess as well, but it’s important we finish strong as well, so we’ve got responsibilities to do that as well.
“So, we’ve got to get the balance right, but it’s a massive part of me and for this football club is to try and bring the younger players on and give them opportunities to see what they can do, yeah, for sure.”
Discussing his team selection for Forest on Sunday, Carrick said: “I think it always gets to this stage of the season where there are a few uncertainties. I think whatever this situation, however you finish the season or whatever, I think there’s always a case of contracts or individual kind agendas, if you like, or roles situation.
“But all I can say is we want to finish the season strong. We’ve put ourselves in a good position. We’ve achieved something to a point. Home and away, it doesn’t matter, we feel that responsibility and pride and in ourselves and for the football club that we want to finish strong so we’ll put a team out to do that.”
Lacey made his senior debut against Aston Villa under Ruben Amorim in December. He subsequently made a further two first-team appearances against Burnley and Brighton when Darren Fletcher was caretaker boss.
Speaking after Burnley, Fletcher said of Lacey: “I’m pleased for him because there have been a lot of injuries in recent years, and he’s not really got going with his momentum, but we know the talent that he’s got, and he’ll be a big part of Manchester United’s future. I’ve no doubts about that.”