Manchester United’s Darren Fletcher hits out at Man City over FA Youth Cup Final behaviour

“It felt like a Man City competition”, says Fletcher

Now, according to BBC Sport, Manchester United Under-18s head coach Darren Fletcher aired his views around Manchester City’s trophy celebrations ‘forcefully’, shouting at Football Association officials during the post-match presentation.

Speaking to reporters after the contest, Fletcher admitted, “I’m disappointed in the FA for everything that’s gone around this game: for the location, for everything. You have to respect the opposition. But not when Man City take over an FA Youth Cup.

“It’s an FA competition. It should never have been like that. I’ve never heard individual coaches be shouted out and every individual player be shouted out. That doesn’t happen in cup finals.”

The former Manchester United midfielder continued, “It’s an FA competition and it felt like it was a Man City competition for this whole build-up to the game and in terms of how we had to deal with that at the end.

“That’s my one gripe for tonight. But the best team won, compliments to them.”

Scheduling woes continue for United

The fallout arrives at a delicate time for Manchester United’s academy, with Darren Fletcher also highlighting the ‘difficult dynamics’ of a congested fixture list.

Several of Thursday’s starters are now also expected to feature in the club’s Premier League 2 final against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday – less than 48 hours after the emotional and physical drain of a derby cup final.

While Manchester City celebrate their fifth FA Youth Cup trophy – furthering their dominance in the 2020s – United appear increasingly vocal about protecting the prestige of the competition.