Amid the madness of a summer transfer window where Manchester United are bringing in plenty of new players, there has been some news which might not be as well-covered but should still bring the same excitement to many United fans, especially those that follow the youth closely.

Callum Gribbin, RoShaun Williams and Zak Dearnley, three of our brightest U18s prospects, have committed their long-term futures to the club by all signing contracts this week.

Gribbin has confirmed his was a four-year contract and while nothing has been leaked from William’s or Dearnley, we have been informed he has signed a similar length contract.

It has been such a great year for these lads last season. Williams and Gribbin played most of the games for the U18s and Dearnley was also a regular for a big part of the season. All were still eligible for the U16s at that time, which is indicative of their rapid progress through the ranks.

Being pushed on to play with others who are one or two years older than them in great progression and prepares them in the best possible way to the physical nature of football in England.

Williams recovered from a shaky start to the season, illustrated by his positional errors in the 0-4 loss against Liverpool, and went on to have a superb campaign.

The schoolboy formed a formidable partnership with captain Axel Tuanzebe as United went on to have a superb run of clean sheets over the course of the season, including six in a row which ended in the 5-2 win over Manchester City.

For young Gribbin, who has drawn some comparisons with great attacking talents that came through United’s academy in the past such as Norman Whiteside, it has been a spectacular season.

Injuries to some older players such as Croskery, Mitchell, Thompson and Rashford allow him and his teammate Dearnley to claim a regular spot in the U18s.

Despite still blowing hot and cold for many of his appearances, the Salford-born youngster has made the name for himself with a silky dribbling style that remind some fans of Adnan Januzaj. His vision as a playmaker is also second to none for his age.

Beside his inconsistency, Gribbin might feel he needs to add in more goals if he wants to compete for the No.10 spot in the future with the first-team.

That being said, the youngster is a good free-kick taker and his solo goal in the U18s last match of the campaign against Middlesborough suggested there is plenty more things to come from Callum. His lack of pace might be another worry but his style allows him to always find space for himself, so hopefully it won’t stop him to reach the top of his game.

Gribbin and Williams have both made their U21s debut at the end of last campaign in a 1-3 loss against Man City’s EDS and we have every reason to believe they will have more appearances there this season, especially when some of the older players go out on loan or sold.

Both of them have also trained with the first-team this summer ahead of the pre-season Tour which suggests they’re in the manager’s mind for his long-term plan. A good season with the U21s and they might well see them on the plane for next summer’s pre-season tour.

Winger Zak Dearnley might be a less outstanding name than those two during the last U18s campaign but from what we’ve been hearing from Carrington, he’s very highly rated as well and being an U18s regular at 15 suggests the same.

He’s got great pace that could rival his senior James Wilson and is a real danger on the counter-attack with his ability to hit fast on the break being one of his best assets.The youngster can also swing in a good cross which is always a plus point. Another season with the U18s will give us a much better indication as to where he is currently at in terms of development.

There has been some doom and gloom regarding to the academy recently as Andy Mitten’s article pointed out some issues that certainly needed to be addressed. Nevertheless, the academy is still churning out some outstanding talents every year and as long as the pathway to the first-team is still open to them, there is no reason to believe that the youth tradition of Manchester United will be stopping any time soon.