Jack Moorhouse: Pre-season plans in place with first team chance beckoning | OneFootball

The first thing Manchester United are expected to do once the summer transfer window opens is to try to sign more than one midfielder.

Casemiro has already announced he is leaving once his contract ends at the end of the current campaign, while INEOS are keen to sell underperforming star Manuel Ugarte as well.

The club’s top targets include the likes of Elliot Anderson of Nottingham Forest, Newcastle’s Sandro Tonali and Adam Wharton of Crystal Palace. All three are likely to cost a bomb.

United also need a left-back, a winger, and possibly even another centre-back. That effectively means the Red Devils are in no position to buy two midfielders from the aforementioned list.

Midfield hunt

A low-cost signing is expected to complement the elite midfield capture, and should United not manage to find one on the market, the club’s famed academy could provide the solution.

The likes of Jack Fletcher and Tyler Fletcher have already made their senior bows, while Sekou Kone was close to making his breakthrough under Ruben Amorim before his loan exit.

Then there is Jack Moorhouse, who had made the matchday squad four times under the former head coach.

The 20-year-old subsequently left on loan to join Leyton Orient in League One. He made 24 appearances in all competitions, netting once while registering a couple of assists.

Jack Moorhouse has what it takes to make it at United

With the team embroiled in a relegation scrap, it was mutually decided that the Ireland U21 international was better served returning to United.

He has already made a handful of appearances for the U21s and has caught Michael Carrick’s eye as well, getting on the bench for two Premier League games.

Now, The Manchester Evening News has revealed that the Carrington graduate is expected to feature for the first team in pre-season.

“Manchester United youngster Jack Moorhouse is in contention to feature for the first team in pre-season this summer.

Pre-season plans in place

“Moorhouse is expected to feature on tour this summer with many senior players representing their nations at the World Cup, but he is slightly behind a few of his academy teammates.”

U21s boss Adam Lawrence was candid in his assessment of Jack Moorhouse being behind a few of his peers in the pecking order.

“He’s not been as consistent as Shea Lacey [who trains with the first team each day], to be honest,” Lawrence said. “It’s fairly often that the players will go across with the first team anyway. He’s not a staple, like a Jack Fletcher, Shea Lacey, but he’s over there often enough.

“I think between his level of performances in U21s games up until then [the summer], again, there’s always got to be a bit of room to say to the player, go and perform there. Get your loan, get you in the first team.

Can Jack Moorhouse grab his chance?

“The club’s part is to create the pathway. The player’s job is to force the pathway and make that final part. And that’s where Jack sits at the moment.”

But a solid pre-season might just change that particular hierarchy, and Jack Moorhouse has the perfect chance to do that.

Feature image George Wood via Getty Images

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