Liverpool have given Manchester United academy ultimate compliment with shock transfer decision

Manchester United were hesitant to announce the signing of Paul McShane last summer. United were yet to finalise the signing of centre-back Raphael Varane and they were conscious an announcement about the signing of McShane could be mocked.

United needed a centre-back last summer, but McShane obviously wasn't being signed to play for the first team. McShane's contract at relegated Rochdale had just expired and he was ready to hang up his boots after a career spanning 20 years.

McShane had come through United's academy before playing for West Brom, Sunderland, Hull, Reading and Rochdale, making just under 400 senior appearances in the Football League during that period. The re-signing of McShane initially raised eyebrows.

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However, the transfer immediately made sense with context. McShane, then aged 35, was joining United in an innovative coaching appointment, which would see him take up a player-coach role in the Under-23s. It was one of the first roles of its kind.

The decision to bring McShane back to the club proved to be a masterstroke. He was used in training sessions to replicate the physicality of first-team defenders and his role also allowed him to give real-time feedback to youngsters in academy matches.

"When I first came in, it was only me and Bjorn because Teden was with the first team in pre-season and at the start of the last season, so I played in the EFL Trophy games. I missed one of them through Covid," McShane told the MEN back in March.

"Recently, there's been Fishy and Bjorn to play, so I've just taken the role of being needed, if possible. I've played in a couple of games behind closed doors. Training is my