Man Utd and Man City lock horns in transfer battle for highly-rated teenage duo

Manchester United and Manchester City are locking horns for highly-rated Swansea City youth duo Harlan Perry and Brogan Popham.

Both clubs are understood to have scheduled meetings with the teenage duo's representatives after registering an interest in their services.

Wales U17 international Perry, a 16-year-old central midfielder, cannot sign professional terms until he turns 17 in November.

Meanwhile, the Swans are also facing a fight to keep hold of Welsh U18 central defender Popham, who is understood to have made a strong impression upon scouts. Unlike Perry, Popham has already turned 17 but he is yet to sign a pro deal with the Championship club.

If Swansea were to lose either player, they would be entitled to a compensation fee as both prodigies are currently only tied down to scholarship terms.

Both Arsenal and Tottenham are also said to be admirers of the pair but their interest is nowhere near as strong as United or City's, who are now stepping up their enquiries.

Back in May, Perry featured in all three matches for Wales at the U17 European Championships in Cyprus while Popham has also captained Swansea's U17 side in the PDL Cup this season.

United have made a conscious effort to improve their youth recruitment drive since the arrival of INEOS while Manchester City's Elite Development Squad has won the Premier League 2 in three of the past four seasons and in the view of many, their academy set-up remains the best in the business.

Image: Alamy Stock Photo) Alamy Stock Photo)

The Red Devils recently completed a major coup in acquiring the services of red-hot 16-year-old striker Chido Obi-Martin from Arsenal despite strong interest from Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, respectively.

The high-profile move has just received Premier League approval following a lengthy registration process and there is optimism he has the credentials to break into United's first team in the near future.

Head of academy recruitment, Luke Fedorenko, was promoted into the role last August following a restructure and both he and Nick Cox, who is the head of United's academy, are striving to nurture more first-team stars for INEOS.

Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho are now key players under Erik ten Hag and there is hope that more young prospects will follow in their footsteps by breaking into the senior fold.

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