Shea Lacey again proved to be too hot to handle in Man Utd U21s 3-2 win against Sunderland but his teammate was Michael Carrick 2.0.
Goals from Shea Lacey, Chido Obi, and Jack Fletcher ensured Man Utd U21s progressed to the quarter-finals of the Premier League 2 playoffs.
The 3-2 win continues an excellent season for Adam Lawrence’s side, powered by the usual suspects, mainly Lacey and Obi.
However, Michael Carrick will have been particularly delighted with the performance of one youngster who was basically “Carrick 2.0” in the victory.
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Tyler Fletcher shows complete midfield display
Goals get all the headlines in football, which is why Jack Fletcher has been the more heralded twin between the Fletcher brothers.
Jack plays further forward, despite what Ruben Amorim would have you believe, while Tyler Fletcher is the natural defensive midfielder.
Tyler has flown under the radar due to his playing style, something which Carrick is all too familiar with.
Against Sunderland U21s, Tyler showed that the similarities with Carrick don’t end there, as he put in a silky midfield performance that would put a smile on the Man Utd manager’s face.
He was calmness personified at the base of the midfield, skipping past tackles and challenges like he had the ball on a string.
The press resistance was combined with the final product, as he broke lines with his passing regularly, just like Carrick used to do.
Furthermore, he relied on his footballing intangibles and positioning intelligence to cut off many Sunderland attacks at the source instead of going crazy into tackles and duels.
One Cruyff turn at the edge of his own box to escape the Sunderland press and get United moving forward drew audible applause from his coaches, as Fletcher looked like a player in zen mode.
Fletcher needs a European loan next season
With United aiming to strengthen with multiple midfielders, and the likes of Cristian Orozco, Sekou Kone, Jacob Devaney, and Jim Thwaites, just to name a few, already banging on the first-team door, Tyler Fletcher’s route to the first team is daunting.
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The only way he can accelerate on that route is by going elsewhere and showing his quality in senior football.
It helped Devaney bring himself to the radar of the first team by impressing at St Mirren, and the same can happen with Fletcher.
Due to his playing style, he needs to avoid an English football league loan, and go somewhere where he can show what he’s good at, instead of being picked on for what he’s not the best at.
Somewhere in Scotland, or a La Liga 2 experience in Spain, could be just the cultural challenge he needs to suit his footballing skills.
There’s definitely a player there who can play Premier League football in the future.
The question is how soon he can get to that level, and if that happens regularly for Man Utd. On recent evidence, both of those things can be true.
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