Manchester United have been blasted for selling cheaply instead of investing in their young talent after Alvaro Carreras joined Real Madrid from Benfica in the summer
Manchester United made a huge mistake in letting Alvaro Carreras leave Old Trafford, according to one of the club’s former scouts. Piotr Sadowski has criticised the Red Devils’ decision to cash in on the Spaniard and suggested the club have thrown away a potential superstar.
Carreras joined United as a youth player from Real Madrid and was named United’s under-23 player of the season in 2022 before heading on a series of loans to Preston, Granada and Benfica. The left-back never played for United’s first team, though he was an unused substitute for several Premier League games, and ultimately departed for Benfica in a deal worth up to £7.8million in 2024.
A year on from that, the Red Devils will be pleased they included a sell-on clause in the agreement. Real Madrid plucked the 22-year-old from Portugal for £43m, with United receiving a £7.2m cut of that fee.
Still, it appears Old Trafford is missing out on quite the talent. Real splashed the cash after Carreras delivered four goals and five assists in 52 matches last season and he hasn’t slowed down since leaving Lisbon.
The Spaniard has already nailed down a place in Xabi Alonso’s starting XI, only missing eight minutes of La Liga action this term and starting three of four Champions League matches. Carreras scored his first Madrid goal in early November and has helped Los Blancos to the top of the table with a three-point advantage over Barcelona.
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Ex-United scout Sadowski has questioned United’s reluctance to invest in young players. He slammed the club’s dealings with Carreras, who he believed was following a good path before United gave up.
“He came to Manchester United when he was probably 16 (in 2020),” Sadowski told Przeglad Sportowy. “A very hard-working and ambitious boy, he learned the language quickly – I know because I met him personally.
“Initially, his career path was quite good. He was loaned to Preston, received good reviews, and (then) United gave up on him, selling him to Benfica for a small fee.
“Carreras is a truly top-class player,” Sadowski continued. “There’s a good chance he’ll become the best, or one of the best, left-backs in the world. He scored a beautiful goal recently against Valencia in La Liga.
“It was a huge mistake for United to let him go. Something is missing here and I think that something is United’s lack of courage in investing in young players.”
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