Prior to Marcus Rashford’s breakthrough as an exciting forward in the Manchester United first team, James Wilson looked to be the man to make that breakthrough.
It is fair to say that down the years of Manchester United’s existence as a professional football club, the Red Devils have had some world-class talent come through the club’s famed youth academy.
In recent seasons, Kobbie Mainoo, Alejandro Garnacho and Toby Collyer have made the step up. Before that, there was Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard.
One forgotten name is James Wilson, who was brought through under David Moyes and then Louis Van Gaal.
Nearly a decade on from Wilson’s United breakthrough, what happened to the English forward?
James Wilson’s Manchester United debut
Following the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson during the end of the successful 2012/2013 season, David Moyes’ one and only season as the legendary Scotsman’s replacement was a disastrous one.
The Red Devils slumped to a seventh-placed finish under Moyes before he was eventually sacked by the club after a humbling 2-0 defeat to Everton at Goodison Park.
That season was a rather disastrous one but the emergence of Adnan Januzaj was the only bright spark.
However, English forward Wilson was given a chance under interim manager Ryan Giggs and he excelled scoring twice against Hull City in a comfortable win at Old Trafford.
Following that two-goal salvo towards the end of the campaign, Wilson would feature just 19 more times for the club before departing Old Trafford under Van Gaal.
In his 20 appearances for the Red Devils, Wilson scored on four occasions in total. At one stage, Wilson was viewed as the heir to Robin Van Persie but what happened to the 204th United academy graduate?
What happened to James Wilson?
During the 2015-16 campaign, Wilson was loaned out to Brighton & Hove Albion and Derby County before returning to United in 2017.
He would make 10 appearances for United’s under-23s before another loan spell to Sheffield United which did not work out for the Englishman.
After departing Old Trafford, Wilson has had spells at Scottish side Aberdeen, Salford City, who are owned by the Class of ’92 and Port Vale.
During the summer transfer window, Wilson moved to EFL League One side Northampton Town and has made four appearances for the club during the current campaign.
Why did James Wilson not make it at Manchester United?
The now 28-year-old admitted his hero was Wayne Rooney but the English striker did not make anywhere near the same impact that the former Everton forward did.
“I got scouted when I was seven playing for a local team in Stoke and ended up at United’s academy from then until my early 20s,” Wilson told Daily Mail.
“Because I broke through at such an early age, I was naive to it. I didn’t see the effects of the pressure of so many fans there.
“If people want to say I am a failure, they can have that opinion,’ he adds. ‘But all that I can say is that I am working so hard week in, week out to try to get my career back to what it was.”
During his time at Brighton, the Englishman struggled on the South Coast and he may be best remembered for throwing up on the pitch for the Seagulls.
He said: “The pressure and anxiety got to me and I could not hold it in, I was sick. It happens to a lot of footballers, especially when in front of the cameras.”
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
