Erik ten Hag makes exciting admission about Manchester United U21 stars ahead of Leeds fixture

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has insisted some of the club's U21 stars are "not far away" from a place in the senior squad.

The United youngsters, who finished ninth in the Premier League 2 last season, suffered an agonising opening day defeat to Crystal Palace on Monday, losing 3-2 at the London club's training ground. Noam Emeran netted a 90th-minute equaliser for the Reds, only for Palace to snatch all three points in the seventh minute of injury time.

It means Under-21s boss Travis Binnion will be keen to see his side bounce back from that gut-wrenching loss by putting on a show for the Old Trafford crowd. United's U21s play the bulk of their home games at Leigh Sports Village but will get the opportunity to grace the Old Trafford turf for their first home outing of the season.

And first-team boss Ten Hag believes the opportunity to play at Old Trafford will be a great experience for the club's youngsters aiming to make the grade.

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"I think it is great for the fans to see our players who are not yet in front of them," Ten Hag told MUTV. "They are playing in the U21s, but they are not far away and on short notice they can line up in the first team.

"It is a great opportunity to see them. And for the players, it is very important because they already have then the experience of playing at Old Trafford.

"That ambience that will help them for the moment they line up in the first team."

Ten Hag believes the contest between United and Leeds has the potential to be an "exciting" encounter. The