Manchester United youngster James Scanlon is making an impact at international level, in difficult circumstances.
This month James Overy hit the headlines with his senior call-up to the Australia squad. He is seeking to become the third current Manchester United academy player to make his international debut before his club one.
He joins Diego Leon (Paraguay) and James Scanlon (Gibraltar). And the latter is racking up some major game time.
| Rank | Team |
|---|---|
| 198 | Turks and Caicos Islands |
| 199 | San Marino |
| 200 | Gibraltar |
| 201 | Sri Lanka |
| 202 | British Virgin Islands |
Playing for minnows Gibraltar is a tough task. They are ranked 200th in the FIFA world rankings, with only two European nations below them, Liechtenstein (206) and San Marino (210).
And amid this near-impossible challenge, James Scanlon has been accruing some major experience along the way.
James Scanlon stars for winless Gibraltar
Gibraltar’s World Cup qualifying campaign is almost at an end, and they are on course to finish without a single point.
This is not through lack of effort. Manchester United youngster James Scanlon provided an assist in their 2-1 defeat to Montenegro this weekend.
Scanlon received praise from local outlet the Gibraltar Chronicle, who praised the individual quality he displayed to create the goal.
The report read: “A brilliant run through the middle by Scanlon saw him glide past two players before threading the perfect ball into space.”
This goal put Gibraltar 1-0 up in the first half, before they fell to a 2-1 defeat, already confirmed in last place in their group.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Croatia | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | +21 | 19 |
| 2 | Czechia | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | +4 | 13 |
| 3 | Faroe Islands | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | +2 | 12 |
| 4 | Montenegro | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | -8 | 9 |
| 5 | Gibraltar | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | -19 | 0 |
Scanlon can be proud of his efforts, where he has played 19 international games already for his nation, which also saw him become the youngest scorer in UEFA Nations League history, before the record was broken by Lamine Yamal. He has a World Cup qualifying goal to his name too.
The Manchester United youngster has been able to play against Croatian legend Luka Modric in qualifying, and in a previous international game he also took on a Scotland team boasting several Premier League players
| Appearances | Goals | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| 19 | 2 | 1 |
Scanlon and Gibraltar play their final World Cup qualifying game against the Czech Republic this coming week.
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James Scanlon in conversation for Man Utd loan
With good competitive experience under his belt already, and a prolific record in Manchester United’s academy, Scanlon is unlucky not to have had more of a look-in for the first team.
Scanlon did not travel on the club’s pre-season tour to the USA, with United electing to keep his development close at hand.
The Mail reported this month that there were enquiries from clubs over a loan move in the summer window, and his name is likely to crop up again in January.
For the sake of his continued development, Scanlon needs to play first team football. It is the logical next step, and one that he has shown he is ready for.
Even if there is a team struggling in their league looking for a spark, Scanlon can be the one to provide it.
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