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Manchester United recently parted ways with long-time servant, Neil Harris, following a club-wide restructure.
The recently concluded summer transfer window saw Ineos lead United’s transfer business for the first time. The club’s new hierarchy made five senior signings and sold plenty of out-of- favour stars to improve their wage bill.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe and company have also left their mark behind the scenes, having made plenty of high-profile appointments in their bid to restructure the football setup at Old Trafford.
While these moves have been received well by the Red Devils fanbase, the decision to make 250 staff members redundant due to their cost-cutting efforts has divided opinion.
In particular, the club-wide restructure has led to the departure of Neil Harris, who spent 21 years working for United’s academy, playing a vital role in shaping many future first-team players. Most recently, he worked as the lead youth development phase coach.
The Manchester Evening News labels Harris an “unsung hero” and reveals that he received personal messages from the likes of Scott McTominay, Anthony Elanga, and Axel Tuanzebe after his departure was confirmed. All three players, now at Napoli, Nottingham Forest, and Ipswich Town respectively, graduated from the United academy.
A testimonial from McTominay, who left his boyhood club this summer, read: “Neil is a wonderful coach who inspired and mentored me all the way through my academy journey.”
“He is a coach who not only shaped me into the footballer that I am today but the person I am. He helped me understand the sacrifices and values that I needed,” said Elanga.
The young forward, who made his senior debut for the Mancunian giants in 2021, appreciates Harris’ contribution to his development so much that he got his former coach tickets for Forest’s game against Liverpool at Anfield in September. Elanga and his teammates beat the Reds 1-0.
Harris was also part of McTominay’s journey at United. During the interview with the Manchester Evening News, he reflected on the Scottish midfielder’s departure, claiming Sir Alex Ferguson always had a role for players like him.
He said: “I still refer to Sir Alex as the gaffer and he always had a role for Darren Fletcher, Park Ji-sung, Gary and Phil Neville, players who he could rely upon. Scott was one of those players for me.”
The 27-year-old has enjoyed a tremendous start to his career in Naples, leaving many fans and pundits alike questioning United’s decision to sell him this summer.
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