McGuinness: Van Gaal Is Following Man. United's Best Traditions

Manchester United Academy coach Paul McGuinness believes Louis van Gaal is following in the footsteps of former Reds bosses by pinning his faith in youth.

Jesse Lingard, James Wilson, Andreas Pereira, Sam Johnstone, Cameron Borthwick-Jackson and Axel Tuanzebe have all been included in matchday squads for the first team this term and there is a real sense that van Gaal is willing to take chances and blood homegrown talent.

In an exclusive MUTV interview with McGuinness, the much-respected tutor of young players reveals the extent of Lingard's nerves during the successful FA Youth Cup run in 2011 and how advice from former youth-team boss Eric Harrison sprung to mind in the wake of Borthwick-Jackson's recent debut.

You must be very proud of Jesse Lingard following his performance against West Brom…
Well, I think everybody who has worked in the Academy in the last few years and been involved with Jesse was delighted. He’s a real success story for everybody, particularly for himself, as he’s worked so hard and all his family have backed him and so on by bringing him here for so many years. He probably wouldn’t have had the same opportunities at another Academy. It’s one thing we do pretty well – we work with late developers. He was very small when he was younger, a late developer coming through, but we saw the talent and everybody believed in him. I think that gave him the confidence to keep going and develop himself so we’re absolutely delighted he’s doing so well in the first team.

Has all the patience and faith been vindicated after such a long time?
Definitely and everybody at the Academy had a hand in that. If you go through all those years, everybody has a bit of responsibility to look after the players and guide them and so on. Everybody played a role in that. People off the field were giving him the right guidance and that wouldn’t have happened at some clubs. He was a little lad and they wouldn’t have kept him in the team or protected him like he was here. He has a great personality and is very positive so it’s very rewarding to see that progress each step along the way, like a lot of us have seen.

Did he have to play down in his age group, with the Under-16s rather than the Under-18s?
We had to do that, he was playing down at times and we were playing him at the right time but there also comes a time when you know he’s not going to be a giant so he has to adjust to being in with bigger and stronger lads. He was always capable of doing that because he was very brave and always brave in wanting to take the ball and confident. So, yes, he’s been a big success story.

He’s come a long way since the FA Youth Cup-winning team and that semi-final against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge…
Absolutely, he was big part of the squad for all those games but so nervous before that game. At the pre-match meal, I kept looking over and he was shaking in the dressing room and so on. After 10 minutes, the physio had to go on and we asked him if Jesse was okay or injured. He said, "No, Jesse’s so nervous, he’s just been sick on the pitch." That's how nervous he was but he recovered and did well in that game, and he then played well in the 4-0 win at Old Trafford in the second leg, and also the final. He was a key part in everything. Playing at Old Trafford in the FA Youth Cup was an important step. There were big crowds in the semi-final and the final, so getting that experience obviously stood him in good stead to play first of all in league football while out on loan and then in the first team here. He loves Old Trafford and he’s comfortable playing there.

How pleasing was it to see Cameron Borthwick-Jackson make his debut at Old Trafford in that West Brom game?
It was probably a bit of a shock and a shock for everybody else. It reminded me of a phrase Eric Harrison used to have for us when we were youngsters – don’t let it be a surprise when you play in the first team. I think what he meant from that is you’ve got to be training every day and doing the right things, learning from all the experience in big games so, if you’re picked, it doesn’t surprise you. You’re good enough and you know you’re good enough because you’ve done everything right in training. I’m pleased to say Cameron did well for the 20-odd minutes he played and now he must use that as a springboard and an incentive to make sure he is training and playing games for the Under-21s right. If he does that, then nothing is a surprise. If he is doing everything absolutely right, there is a chance he can get more games.

It must have been daunting and something you can't prepare for but Cameron didn’t seem fazed, he appears to be pretty laid-back…
You don’t know until it happens in that situation and he was thrown into it, sort of, at the last minute. I thought he coped pretty well but, of course, he has to build on that and the only way to do that is to have consistent performances in training and games with Warren [Joyce]’s group.

Another defender called up recently was Axel Tuanzebe and he was only 17 at the time…
This is where Louis van Gaal, to be honest with you, is following completely in the footsteps of previous United managers’ tradition for it. When I was a young player, I was taken to two or three games when you had a first reserve, there were only 11 players and one sub, so you’d go in as reserve and carry the kit and do other things. It all gives you experience of being with the first team and that’s going on regularly now. The first team does not have a massive squad so this week, the international week, the Under-18s, Under-19s and Under-21s are all training with the first-team players which is great for their development.

Does it provide incentive to all the youngsters – they can see light at the end of the tunnel if they’re patient?
It shows you how close you can be. You feel that in your own career. You’re very close to it all but it’s that last bit and they’ve got to make that impact and be ready to take the chance when it comes. You don’t know when it will come so you have to be prepared all the time. You can’t have a day or week off and think I’ll be okay, I’ll not live my life right over the weekend, because you don’t know when the call is coming. It could be on Monday morning and you’re with the first team. So you’ve got to be prepared 24-7. It’s got to be your dream, and you’ve got to do it every day.

As a local man yourself, does the fact we’re getting players through from Manchester make things even sweeter?
It’s great for everybody at the club. I think they’re very much aware within the hierarchy of the club as well, that being Manchester United is just not the same if it doesn’t have a core of homegrown players. It’s part of the ingredients, the brand and it wouldn’t be the same if we didn’t have homegrown players. You can see there are frustrations at one or two other clubs in the fact they’re not getting homegrown players in and you’ve seen we had two or three involved the other week. You’ve got to applaud the manager for that and he’s carrying on a very long tradition.

Credit: Manutd.com