It is often clear who Manchester United internally views as the elite prospects, based on who is handed professional contracts at an early stage.
Not every talented Manchester United academy player is handed his professional contract at the age of 17, with some having to wait until they are a little older before the club has to.
However, for the biggest talents, United is known to lock them down quickly once they turn 17 to avoid losing them to other clubs.
Kobbie Mainoo signed his professional deal when he was 17, Alejandro Garnacho was also 17, and more recently, United wonderkid Amir Ibragimov was handed a professional deal at the age of 17.
It is a sign of the club having huge faith in the talent of the prospect, and the firm belief that the player in question will join the 254 United academy graduates so far.
Now, United have locked down another supreme talent to a long-term professional deal.
Bendito Mantato signs professional contract with Manchester United
Within the academy right now, there are few more exciting and considered more likely to make the step into first team football than Bendito Mantato.
Viewed among the finest talents in the country, Mantato has been steadily knocking on the first-team door under Ruben Amorim, and now the club has thrown its support behind him.
It has been reported by the Manchester Evening News, that Mantato has now penned his first professional contract at United, three months after his 17th birthday.
Mantato is considered an elite talent, and he has rejected interest from Chelsea, Liverpool, Newcastle, and Brighton over the past year before committing to United.
The deal will see Mantato remain at United until 2029, by which stage he could be a star player, in which case the club’s option for an additional year will come in handy.
Academy Scoop shared an exclusive image of this on X on Wednesday night.
- READ: Who is Bendito Mantato? Man Utd’s ‘brilliant’ Bukayo Saka-like talent that Ruben Amorim rates highly
Bendito Mantato should be Manchester United’s 255th academy graduate
Despite some injury concerns, this season has been incredible for Mantato as he has made U18 football look like a walk in the park and also looked like a very special talent on his step into U21 football.
It was claimed earlier this season that Amorim was planning to hand Mantato his first-team debut this season, and he looks well placed to do so, having been on the bench for the crucial trip to Bilbao last week.
Mantato could be Amorim’s very own Geovany Quenda in the right wing-back position after Chelsea swoop to sign the wonderkid from Sporting CP with a pre-agreement for 2026.
Sooner or later, Amorim is going to unleash Mantato on the league, and chances are he won’t look back. Mantato is physically ready for the step up and therefore should be the front-runner to be the 255th academy graduate.
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