Ex-Manchester United defender Sir Alex Ferguson banished from first-team but regretted selling
manchestereveningnews.co.ukThe future had looked bright for Ryan Shawcross at Manchester United. He had been part of an Academy side which included the likes of future stars Giuseppe Rossi, Gerard Pique and Jonny Evans and hopes were high the youngsters could eventually provide a strong core for the senior side for years to come.
It was a youth side that also featured Darron Gibson, Fraizer Campbell and Danny Simpson, who wracked up dozens of Premier League appearances between them - though most of them were not for United.
Shawcross had joined the United Academy at the age of nine, eventually making his debut against Crewe Alexandra in the League Cup in 2006.
He was farmed out to Royal Antwerp and Stoke City, later joining the Potters on a permanent deal. READ MORE: Glazers keeping Erik ten Hag in the dark over Ratcliffe investment in United READ MORE: Ten Hag likens Onana's start to De Gea and Schmeichel's It was a move the defender had to push hard for, though, as his insistence on leaving for first-team football led to legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson banishing him from first-team training. "I was offered a new four-year contract to stay at United," Shawcross told StokeonTrentLive in 2020. "But I didn’t see a pathway through to the first team.
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