Michael Carrick has just proved Jim Thwaites is Man Utd's secret weapon for 2026/27 campaign

There was a lot of excitement over Jim Thwaites getting an opportunity for Manchester United this summer which has yet to arrive, but Michael Carrick is showing why he shouldn’t be worried.

Last season, Jim Thwaites was one of Manchester United’s best academy players, running the midfield for the U18s and stepping flawlessly into U21 football as well.

Thwaites caught Michael Carrick’s eye with his sharp passing, press resistance, set-piece ability, vision and his footballing intelligence. This leading to Thwaites being on the bench for a handful of first-team games, on the cusp of breaking through.

After he was on the bench at Stamford Bridge, Carrick raved about Thwaites, painting the picture that he was a big fan of the silky midfield player. Thwaites has been in first-team pre-season, but so far failed to get a single minute, which says a lot less than it seems.

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Thwaites will be really disappointed to have missed out on any game-time in the opening two games of pre-season, but the experience alone is so valuable for the 18-year-old.

He has been training players who he can learn a lot from, all the while clearly making an impression on Carrick to have had a continued presence within the first-team squad.

This has gone a step further this week, with reports Dan Gore and Toby Collyer aren’t under consideration for first-team football, and they weren’t seen in training this week, whereas Thwaites was front and centre of the pictures.

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Thwaites hasn’t gotten his chance in pre-season, but it was a lot more telling what Carrick thought of him to have brought him to Stamford Bridge than some minutes in pre-season, and his chance will come.

While Gore and Collyer will be loaned out, Jacob Devaney potentially as well, Thwaites will be the U21s main midfielder this coming season and if he performs to the level we all know he’s capable of then it won’t be long until he is making competitive appearances.

The U21s play Altrincham on Friday night and Thwaites still being with the first-team instead of with Adam Lawrence’s side speaks volumes.

It is important to remember that Thwaites is a lot younger than the other midfielders on tour and so it isn’t shocking he hasn’t played. But he hasn’t let it get him down, he has stayed patient and worked hard throughout.

It seems like Carrick really likes Thwaites, so don’t be surprised if he ends up coming through quite quickly once those older than him are sorted out.

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Thwaites has added a lot of muscle to his frame

Technically, Thwaites is second to none right now in the Manchester United ‘academy’ midfield ranks. But the one criticism was often his lack of size and strength.

But over the summer, he has changed this. Thwaites has grown physically both getting taller and wider, making him look a lot more suited for senior football.

In training this week, Thwaites’ arms show the growth as he has clearly added muscle which will only help him in his efforts to break through under Carrick.

Thwaites will remain around the first-team, learning under Carrick, training with Youri Tielemans and we can see opportunities coming in the cup competitions this coming campaign.

One of the most exciting talents we have.

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