Who is Josh Harrop? The Manchester United starlet who scored on his Premier League debut against Crystal Palace

Who is the youngster who started for Mourinho's United on Sunday?

Jack Austin
Sunday 21 May 2017 07:53 EDT
Comments
Josh Harrop marked his debut with a fairytale goal
Josh Harrop marked his debut with a fairytale goal (Getty)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Manchester United unleashed a number of their youth-team stars against Crystal Palace on Sunday with one of the most exciting names, Josh Harrop starting in attack.

With the Europa League at the forefront of Jose Mourinho’s thinking, Harrop is one of a number of United’s promising starlets being called upon to make their first-team debuts.

Harrop was name-checked by Mourinho in his pre-match press conference before being handed his debut at Old Trafford and what's more, he scored, cutting in off the left before slamming home with his right-foot for the storybook start.

But who is the newest name on the lips of United fans? Here's a closer look.

Profile

Name: Josh Harrop

Date of birth: 15 December, 1995

Age: 21

Position: Midfielder

Place of birth: Stockport, England

Background

Having joined the club in July 2012, United-supporting Harrop made a strong start to life in Warren Joyce’s youth team, scoring four times in 11 starts in the 2014/15 season. He then helped the under-21s last season but was hampered by injuries, restricting him to only 13 appearances. He caught Mourinho’s eye on Monday for the under-23 side, scoring an impressive hat-trick against Tottenham.

Style of play

Harrop is a natural playmaker, who is most comfortable operating in central midfield but it equally as capable of playing in the No 10 position. He brings a lot skill and flair to proceeding and has a keen eye for goal too, having scored eight goals in 21 Premier League 2 appearances this season.

Video

What they’ve said

Harrop was linked with a January loan move north of the border with Hibernian with Neil Lennon expressing an interest in the 21-year-old. No move prevailed but expect a number of clubs to be back in for him in the summer as he looks to get some first-team experience.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in