James Wilson celebrates his first Manchester United goal with the departing Nemanja Vidic (Picture: Getty Images)

There are very few better feelings than seeing a young player given his first-team debut and him making an instant impact. This is the scenario Manchester United supporters faced last evening when it emerged 20-year-old Tom Lawrence and teenager James Wilson were both in the starting line-up to face Hull City in the final home match of the season at Old Trafford.

On a night when both teams had very little, if anything at all, to play for the youngsters in Manchester United’s team certainly gave the supporters something to shout about. What had started out as a drab affair which would see the end of Nemanja Vidic’s Manchester United career, soon turned into a pressure-free environment within which Wilson, Lawrence and Adnan Januzaj could simply enjoy their football.



In a season which has had more downs than ups Lawrence and Januzaj both showed an expressiveness when on the ball which has been so noticeably lacking in United’s ‘flair’ players this season. There was absolutely no fear about them, even with late challenges coming their way from despairing Hull City defenders. This youthful exuberance for football was infectious and even Marouane Fellaini was determined to get forward and net his first Manchester United goal.

A lot has been known about Wilson for a while now, from his appearance on the substitutes’ bench at St James’ Park earlier this season to his outstanding goalscoring record across all age platforms at United, however, Lawrence, recently returned from a loan spell with relegated Yeovil Town, was a slightly more unknown quantity.


Tom Lawrence made way for Ryan Giggs after an impressive first-team debut. (Picture: AP Photo)

The Welshman started on the left-wing and was a threat all evening. After a bright start Lawrence did seem to slow down and fade out of the match as the climax of the first-half approached but such is natural for a player making his first appearance in the Premier League.

Lawrence’s best moment of the evening came just two minutes after the interval, with the debutant starting a surging forward run from just inside Hull City’s half to just outside the penalty area before being cynically brought down by David Meyler. It was the type of forward, carefree run which United supporters have seldom seen on the left-hand side for a worrying period of time.

Wilson has had no trouble scoring goals throughout his career and the 18-year-old took that into his first-team career last evening as the academy graduate netting a brace. Both goals were finishes of a true poacher and what was particularly impressive about Wilson was his focus.

Not once did he get distracted by drifting out of the penalty area to look for the ball, as so many of United’s forwards have done this season. Wilson’s determination to stay in the box and sniff out a chance was a breath of fresh air and he duly deserved his first two goals.

With last night indicating yet another end of an era at Old Trafford with the departure of club captain Vidic, the performances of Wilson, Januzaj and Lawrence as well as Louis van Gaal’s famed reputation for working well with youth suggests the future is bright at the club once again.

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