Man Utd: Solskjaer pleased to give Shoretire debut
Teenage midfielder Shola Shoretire made his senior debut just weeks after signing his first professional contract for Manchester United. The 17-year-old is one of the hottest prospects in the Premier League, but could be turning out for a another club if events had unfolded very differently when he was a child.
Shola Shoretire made his first team debut for United during Sunday's 3-1 win over Newcastle (Image: GETTY)
According to the Daily Mail, Shoretire could be competing with the likes of Phil Foden and Kevin de Bruyne for a place in the City midfield.
Shoretire was initially on the books of United’s bitter rivals, but was released when it emerged that he had trained with Barcelona’s academy while on holiday in Spain.
City were keen to keep him on their books, but decided against it, leading Shoretire to switch allegiances.
Shoretire joined United's academy after being released from City (Image: GETTY)
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Before that though, Shoretire began his footballing career at hometown club Newcastle, who he ironically made his debut against.
And former Toon youth coach David Ballantyne, who also did private sessions with the highly promising eight-year-old, admitted that Shoretire is another one who got away for the north east side.
“Shola's dad wanted to give him the best possible start, and it paid dividends,' says Ballantyne, who was working with Shoretire at Newcastle and his own Feet4Football enterprise.
“When he first came in at Newcastle, I just thought, "Wow". I had worked with lots of children in the academy, but only one or two are special from the off — and he was.
“He was a ready-made athlete with quick feet. We moved him up in age straight away. The club would have loved to sign him.
“Sadly, we could not compete with City. Shola moved to Manchester and joined their academy. That is the big frustration.
“He should have been making his debut for Newcastle on Sunday. In fact, he is so good, he would have made it long ago. He is just another one who got away for Newcastle.”