Man Utd dumped out of FA Youth Cup by Swindon Town in embarrassing defeat
Manchester United have been humiliatingly knocked out of the FA Youth Cup by League Two Swindon Town in the fourth round of this year's tournament.
The Robins have reached the fifth round courtesy of a 2-0 win over the Red Devils at the County Ground. It took just 14 minutes for the hosts to take the lead, when Botan Ameen fired in after playing a one-two with George Alston inside the box.
Six minutes before the break, Ameen doubled his and Swindon's tally for the night, with the Robins starlet dropping a shoulder and curling the ball into the top left corner after an error by a United defender. It is an embarrassing defeat for United, who have won the Youth Cup 11 times, more than any other club.
The Red Devils announced the defeat on Twitter through their main club account, though attempted to look on the bright side. United tweeted: "Our U18s are defeated in the FA Youth Cup fourth round. A learning curve moving forward."
It is the second year in succession that United have failed to make it past the fourth round, having been defeated at the same stage by Stoke City last season. Swindon will take on either Sunderland or Gillingham in the next round.
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Though they will have to wait until next week before discovering their opponents. That is because the fourth round tie between the Black Cats and the Gills was postponed due to the forecast of freezing temperatures that were likely to make the playing surface unplayable.
The fifth round ties are scheduled to be held on February 10, with last season's winners West Ham also being knocked out in the fourth round. The Hammers fell to a 2-0 defeat to Manchester City after extra time to see their defence of the trophy ended.
It is the second successive year in which United have crashed out at the fourth round stage (Manchester United/Manchester United via Getty Images)United's early exit comes after the club made significant changes to its academy coaching structure in the summer. Adam Lawrence was appointed Under-18s manager, having previously led the Under-16s, with academy director Nick Cox tipping him to have a positive impact.
“We are really pleased to, once again, assemble a fantastic group of coaches with an excellent set of complementary skills that will best support our Professional Development Phase group," he said at the time the changes were announced.
“Travis [Binnion] and Adam are outstanding coaches who will lead individualised development programmes for both the Under-21s and Under-18s throughout their bespoke games programmes. We have designed a world-class learning environment for our staff and take great pride in supporting and witnessing their progression.
“We continue to build on the success of last season, striving to maximise each player's potential, provide life-enriching experiences for all of our young people and support Erik ten Hag in building a winning first-team.”
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