Mourinho tipped Man Utd trio for stardom in 2017 but only one remains at club
Jose Mourinho is not often thought of as the ideal candidate to develop youth.
In 2017, following a pre-season friendly between Real Madrid and Manchester United, the former Chelsea boss decided to press his case while in charge of the Red Devils. As he expressed his credentials from the opportunities he provided while in charge of Los Blancos, Mourinho named three players at Old Trafford who could play a big part in their future.
"The other day I found myself in the tunnel before the Real Madrid game and, I'm not talking about the second-half because they were kids who were 15 or 16 during my time there," said the 60-year-old.
"But in the first-half more than half the Real team, which is their first-team because they were only missing Ronaldo and Ramos, all these guys started with me and had debuts with me. They came into the first team with me, they trained with me when they were 15 and 16-years-old.
"Nacho, Casemiro, Carvajal, Morata. Morata was not there, Marcelo was 20. Almost all of them.
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"So probably in a few years Man United will also have half a dozen of these kids [playing first-team football]. I think Scott [McTominay] and Demetri [Mitchell] are also kids to have a future in the club and Andreas Pereira is back."
Mirror Football takes a look at how the trio have fared since that moment.
Scott McTominay
The Scotland international has probably had the most straightforward journey of the youngsters Mourinho tipped and is the only one to fulfil his prediction. McTominay made his European debut under Mourinho against Benfica before signing a contract extension with the Red Devils in October 2017.
Scott McTominay has scored six goals for Man United this season (Getty Images)Little over a year later he signed another extension under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and played a key role against the likes of Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona in the Champions League. The Carrington product's development continued in 2019/20 and despite a knee injury keeping him out for two months, McTominay saw another new contract in June 2020 to tie him down until June 2025.
His first season under Erik ten Hag saw minutes more difficult to come by following the signing of Casemiro but despite United's struggles, McTominay has fought back in 2023/24 to have already recorded his most productive Premier League season with six goals and one assist.
McTominay has made 233 appearances for the 13-times Premier League champions and earned 41 caps for Scotland.
Demetri Mitchell
January 2018 saw Mitchell's first departure from Old Trafford as he travelled north of the border for a loan to Hearts. On that occasion he made 11 appearances and scored his first senior goal in a spell disrupted by an injury to his meniscus tendon.
After returning to United for pre-season and making the squad for the US tour, Mitchell earned a new contract before returning to Hearts on loan. He made 23 appearances that term before suffering a recurrence of his injury that kept him out until September 2019.
Mitchell departed Manchester United the following summer when his contract ended and while he spent time trialling with Sunderland, he eventually signed a two-year deal with Blackpool. After a promising start with the Tangerines, injury hit and he ended up in and out of the starting XI.
January 2022 saw Mitchell head to Hibernian, despite once saying: "Hibs - who are they?" during his time at Hearts. An ankle injury disrupted his first six months with the side, and another saw him barely feature before completing another transfer come January 2023.
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Demetri Mitchell (Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA)Mitchell joined Exeter having impressed former Hibernian defender Gary Caldwell in the time they spent together at the club. The Grecians boss described the ex-United player as a 'massive signing' and he was a regular part of the side until a cruciate ligament injury in November ruled him out for the remainder of this season.
Andreas Pereira
After a season on loan to Valencia, Pereira returned to Old Trafford to earn 63 appearances across the next two seasons as he became a Premier League regular in 2019/20. Pereira, who has a single cap for Brazil, was sent back out on loan in 2020 however.
Bruno Fernandes' arrival meant opportunities became more difficult. Former United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said: “He started last season really well and played loads of games. You could see the confidence growing and see him developing but, after we signed Bruno, that position that Andy played in was taken because Bruno came in and had such an impact. We decided this is what was best for Andreas.”
The midfielder spent the season on loan at Lazio where he was mainly utilised as a substitute before then moving on to Flamengo. While in Brazil, Pereira first tasted defeat in the Copa Libertadores in 2021 before receiving a winners medal for his role in the competition in 2022 as he made 55 appearances with the Rio de Janeiro side.
The 28-year-old joined Fulham in 2022 and has been a key player ever since. He recorded five goals and six assists across 30 appearances in his first season under Marco Silva as an ankle injury saw him miss the final month of the term.
This season has seen Pereira land on the scoresheet less frequently but he remains a regular having racked up one goal and seven assists across 27 appearances for the Cottagers.
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