Countdown 2017/18: Reds' Modern Full-backs

Every day between now and the opening weekend of the 2017/18 Premier League campaign, we're looking ahead to the new term in our season countdown series.

Modern-day full backs are becoming more and more important when it comes to breaking down defences in the Premier League and Manchester United are certainly working on a production line of this type of player.

The most experienced Reserves full-back is Joe Riley, who was loaned to Sheffield United last season, only to suffer a shoulder injury that cut short his season. In his place, Demi Mitchell reverted to left-back with great success after coming up from the Academy as a forward and made his Premier League bow against Crystal Palace.

Matthew Olosunde began to nail down the position on the other side of the defence under interim coach Nicky Butt and finished the campaign strongly, with his surging runs down the flank a key feature of the side's attacking play.

At Under-18 level, Jake Kenyon and George Tanner were often deployed in the full-back roles and, again, both were considered more attacking players in their schoolboy days. Indeed, all five of these players were formerly wingers. The emphasis throughout the system has been to not only develop youngsters by teaching them new roles but also to view the full-backs in a new way.

"I think modern-day full-backs are really attacking players," Butt told ManUtd.com earlier in the season. So it will be interesting to see if the trend continues when Kieran McKenna's Under-18 side takes shape next season.

Riley was pressed on the subject recently and was full of praise for his colleagues, who took on the mantle in his absence and made their mark in the full-back slots.

"I grew up with Demi and I’ve known him a long time," he told ManUtd.com. "Last season, he was playing as a winger or a striker so he’s settled into left-back really well. He’s flying and it’s good to see him doing so well. I’m happy for him and Matthew Olosunde at right-back as well. Both full-backs are playing really well. I saw Matthew’s goal at the Dallas Cup on social media and it was a great goal!

"They both like to run and get forward, Demi has great feet and likes to dribble. He’s scored a few goals as well. The club is bringing quite a few full-backs through and we can learn a lot from the ones in the first team. And the staff here teach you so much, it’s brilliant.

"When I was in the Under-18s, I played a lot on the wing but really, since I joined the Under-21s and Under-23s, at full-back I definitely prefer it. I like to get the ball, pass it to the winger and overlap. I like to run. It’s what I do. I’m definitely a modern-day full-back and it suits me down to the ground really.

"I don’t know, it might seem like there's more work but, for me, running up and down all game and getting things out of it, running up to get crosses in and scoring goals, I don’t even think about it. Running just comes naturally, I enjoy doing it at the end of the day."

Boundless energy and attacking flair are becoming key requisites for the modern-day full-back and United seem well stocked in this area throughout the ranks. Perhaps the conversion of wingers or forwards into this role will continue, with the emphasis on educating the youngsters on the defensive side of the game, something McKenna has worked with Mitchell on, for example.

The benefits are clear for all to see and the trend is an interesting one in football as a whole with plenty of examples at other clubs of full-backs who are vital from an attacking perspective. Tactically, the Reds appear well prepared all the way through the club.

The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and should not be considered as representative of Manchester United Football Club.

Credit: Manutd.com