Man Utd’s 12 wonderkids on Football Manager 26: Kobbie Mainoo & who else?
Football Manager 2026 is finally here. We’ve dived into the new database to check out the 12 Manchester United wonderkids on the game.
United have produced plenty of top talents through their youth academy over the years from David Beckham to Marcus Rashford and the current crop of youngsters is hugely exciting.
After delving through FMScout, we’ve found the 12 United wonderkids that you should be on the lookout for.
Leny Yoro
It’s an obvious place to start, but United’s highest-rated wonderkid is Yoro – who has already become a staple of the first team.
United signed the centre back from Lille for a hefty fee of £58.9million and if there were some initial doubts about his ability, those have started to disappear.
He’s played in every league game for United so far this season and even if defence remains an issue for the club, Yoro has proven to be one of the most reliable options.
Ayden Heaven
Born in London, Heaven was part of the Arsenal academy since the age of eight and was part of a 2024 pre-season tour that included Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri.
But in 2025, United signed the centre back for an undisclosed fee and handed him a four-and-a-half-year deal. But in March, he suffered an ankle injury that required him to be stretchered off.
Appearances have been fleeting this season with just 28 minutes of action, but he received plenty of praise in the summer from Ruben Amorim.
“I think once again Jason Wilcox is doing a great job bringing Ayden,” Amorim said. “I think these types of players are what we need. He showed a lot of quality and character after the big injury.
“We want these types of players.”
Jayden Ngwashi
Defender Ngwashi joined United at the pre-Academy stage before signing a scholarship this year, signalling the club’s belief in his ability to become a first-team player.
In his youth career, the Stoke-born player has featured in both midfield and defence and after impressing with the Under-18s, he has been given some playing time for the Under-21s as well.
Ngwashi has yet to make his senior debut but at 17, time is on his side to do so.
Harry Amass
Left back Amass came up through the Watford academy before United beat Chelsea to the signature of the London-born player.
Since moving north, Amass featured regularly for the Under-18s and Under-21s before being given a spot on the first-team bench for the games against Liverpool and Bournemouth.
On his 18th birthday, he made his United debut as he replaced Alejandro Garnacho for the final 20 minutes of a 3-0 win at Leicester City and this season he has joined Sheffield Wednesday on loan.
Despite the chaos surrounding the Yorkshire club, Amass has done his career no disservice and has played 10 games in the Championship as he gets used to senior football.
Patrick Dorgu
Born in Copenhagen, Dorgu played for three different youth academies before eventually joining Italian club Lecce.
A couple of years in the youth system there allowed him to make his senior debut during a cup match against Como with his first Serie A appearance coming a week later.
His performance soon began to draw attention from across Europe and in the winter transfer window earlier this year, United swooped to sign him for a reported fee of £25million.
Since moving to Old Trafford, Dorgu has found it difficult to nail down a spot in Amorim’s team but has age on his side to develop and become a serious option.
Diego Leon
Leon became United’s second summer signing of 2025, having to that point only ever played for Cerro Porteno in his native Paraguay.
He came up through the club’s youth system before making 33 appearances and scoring four goals in that time.
Since moving to United, he has yet to play for the first team and has instead been featuring for the U21 side in their Premier League 2 campaign.
A left-sided full back, he can also play as a wing back, which may suit Amorim’s system.
Kobbie Mainoo
Mainoo is definitely the most high-profile wonderkid at United, but Football Manager players may find an easier way of getting him in their team than Amorim does.
Despite appearing to be one of the best young English talents, Amorim’s system does not have a natural place for him and Mainoo has increasingly been looking for a move just for game time.
United have insisted they would only sanction a loan deal, which suggests they know he is a star of the future.
Jayce Fitzgerald
The midfielder was born not too far away from Old Trafford in Salford and has been playing for United since he was a kid.
His 2023-24 season was a mix of time spent with the Under-21s and the Under-18s as he picked up a league title and cup win for the latter.
During the chaotic weeks and days between Erik ten Hag’s sacking and Amorim’s appointment, interim boss Ruud van Nistelrooy gave Fitzgerald a first appearance in the senior squad with him on the bench for both a League Cup game and a Premier League fixture.
This season, the attacking midfielder who can also play centrally and in a defensive spot has played seven times in the Premier League 2, scoring one goal and assisting another.
Shea Lacey
As a brother to Paddy Lacey who had a career around plenty of non-league clubs after rejecting Liverpool, Shea Lacey’s dad decided he would join the United academy despite being born in Liverpool.
Since crossing the divide, Lacey impressed as a winger for the young team and earned a promotion to the club’s U18 side ahead of the season in which the team won the title and Premier League Cup.
In 2024-25, he travelled on the post-season tour of Asia and has spent this season with the U21 side and continues to impress his coaches.
Earlier this month, he scored as part of United’s 2-0 win against Notts County in the EFL Trophy as part of his next step onto the United first team.
“It’s important the games programme doesn’t get in the way of his opportunities with the first team,” said Under-21 coach Travis Binnion.
“We speak every day with the first team and get a week ahead in terms of what games he’s going to play.
“He’s progressing really nicely.”
Bendito Mantato
United describe Mantato as a winger who can play in forward and defensive positions, with the born-and-bred Mancunian having played 11 games in the Under-18 Premier League last season.
His most impressive display came when he scored four times in a 5-2 win for the Under-18s and in the following season, he scored seven goals in just 11 games for the same age group.
That got him onto the radar of Amorim, who included him in the pre-season tour ahead of 2025-26, but the 17-year-old is still waiting for his first proper involvement with the senior squad.
QUIZ: Can you name every player Ruben Amorim has used as Man Utd manager?
Amir Ibragimov
Born in Russia,Ibragimov’s family made the move to England when he was 11 and he was quickly snapped up by the academy of Sheffield United.
After two years in Yorkshire, United came calling and he was made captain of the U14 and U15 sides.
For the 2023-24 season, he moved up to the U18s where he became a key player and in the next year, he scored eight goals and assisted six in the U18 Premier League.
He favours the left wing but has played across the front three during his career so far.
Chido Obi
Another Danish youth star in the United setup is 17-year-old Chido Obi who joined United from Arsenal in 2024.
The Gunners signed the forward when he was just 14 and he progressed his way up through the ranks until making his U21 debut at the age of 15.
Mikel Arteta, whose treatment of Max Dowman shows he is not afraid to give youth a chance, invited him to join senior training and he showed his finishing streak when he scored 10 goals in an Under-16 game against Liverpool.
As if that was not enough, he followed it up with seven against Norwich before leaving the club in July.
By September, he was a United player and repaid the faith with a hat-trick against Nottingham Forest U18s.
The player was given his first taste of senior football when he made his debut against Tottenham earlier this year and was given a starting spot for United’s home game against Brentford, becoming the youngest player to start for the club in the Premier League.
READ NEXT: Ex-Man Utd star reveals Alex Ferguson’s most explosive hairdryer moment
TRY A QUIZ: Can you name the last four players to wear numbers 1-11 at Man Utd?