Manchester United's academy dressing room contains a picture of five-time Ballon d'or winner Lionel Messi cleaning his own boots - and it sends out the perfect message to the stars of tomorrow.

In a lengthy piece in The Times, Henry Winter says that the image of Messi cleaning his boots after taking to the field for Argentina against Croatia at Upton Park in 2016 is displayed on the wall.

It serves as a reminder to youngsters to remain grounded and not get too big for their boots (no pun intended). If arguably the greatest player to ever play the sport is still wiping dirt off his boots after a game, you too should adopt the same mentality.

Advert

The same report focuses on Scott McTominay's emergence as a very useful first-team player for Jose Mourinho, with the Scotland international making his 20th appearance of the season with a late cameo in the thrilling 3-2 win over Manchester City.

Image: PA

Despite being a fairly established member of the side now, the 21-year old remains grounded - proof being that he still parks his car at the academy car park at Carrington.

Nice line about Scott McTominay still using the academy car park. A really insightful piece. https://t.co/0t9sHsWajX - Kenny Millar (@Kenny_Millar) April 7, 2018

Advert

The striking paragraph reads:

"Scott McTominay still leaves his car round the front at Carrington, rather than in the first-team car park at the back. Academy hopefuls note this too. They also see Paul Pogba strolling over to greet his old coaches. They understand the dedication and humility required to make it at Manchester United."



Last month, Michael Carrick, who has hailed McTominay as his successor in the United side, spoke glowingly of him and how he conducts himself.

"He goes about his business, he comes in, he is always in doing extra training. He's desperate to do well and he's always looking for those little things to improve on.

Advert

"All the glitz and the glamour that can surround young players these days, he doesn't seem too interested in that, which is fantastic especially at this stage of his career.

"It's about making a career, that's how it is. You can't live like you've had a career before you've had the career - you've got to earn it."