Manchester United are in talks to sign two 16-year-old midfielders regarded as among the finest in the country.

Seth Ridgeon, England under-17s captain, and Tyrese Noubissie, who is set to depart Manchester City, are considering offers from United.

The approaches, spearheaded by United’s head of academy recruitment Luke Fedorenko and director of academy Nick Cox, are part of the renewed drive to bring in what the club sees as some of the best skilled teenagers at British academies.

Ridgeon, an attacking midfielder currently at Fulham, has attracted interest from City, Chelsea, and Liverpool, but United are believed to lead the race should he leave Craven Cottage. Fulham are fighting hard to keep him, but United have made an impressive proposal.

Noubissie is expected to leave City this summer after finding his opportunities limited, and United are among several clubs vying to recruit him.

Both players were invited for tours of facilities at Old Trafford and Carrington, with Fedorenko and Cox leading talks, alongside head of player development and coaching Travis Binnion.

Director of football Jason Wilcox also joined, while Ruben Amorim made a brief appearance too.

Noubissie joined Manchester City from Leicester City in 2023 for a reported fee of £1million. While that came after Wilcox had left his role at City’s academy to join Southampton, he had been aware of the player.

Ridgeon has already played for Fulham’s under-21 side. His dad Jon represented Great Britain at two Olympics and won a silver medal at the 1987 World Championships.

Noubissie is a 6ft 2in midfielder, who can play as a No 6 or No 8. He has British and French passports having been born in Scotland to a father, Patrick, who is from Paris and also had a professional football career.

Noubissie’s continental links have also made him a target for European clubs, who are eligible to sign him. RB Leipzig and Strasbourg are making attempts to convince him to join them and the situation is described as open.

(Top image of Seth Ridgeon: Eric Verhoeven/Soccrates/Getty Images)