With just five games left of the 2024/25 season, it’s not an overstatement to say that Lewis Miley’s season hasn’t been as ’breakthrough-like’ as he would’ve preferred.
The 18-year-old turns 19 this week, and whilst he very much still has the footballing world at his feet, he may be at a crossroads in his development as United head into the 2025/26 season.
The past
Miley had always been earmarked as a standout talent in the club’s academy but no one, not even the most optimistic of youth coaches, could’ve predicted the impact the teenager would have when he was thrust into the first team picture in the 2023/24 season.
In November that season United’s squad was crippled by injuries, Eddie Howe was barely able to name a starting eleven, let alone a substitutes bench. Miley became a regular starter playing 17 times in the Premier League [one goal and one assist] before a back injury cut his dramatic breakout season short towards the end of March.
Undoubtedly his best performance during that run came away at PSG in the Champions League, and despite the unjust nature of the final result, Miley acquitted himself to a similar level of Warren Zairre-Emery, the PSG youngster media where fawning over for much of last season’s European campaign. Talk of similarities between Kobbie Mainoo and Miley were quickly shut down as Miley was clearly the better talent between the two. Then the back injury struck and just as soon as it began, it was over just as quickly.
The present
Of course, Miley’s absence wasn’t as dramatic as that, and a subsequent foot injury kept him out for longer than originally forecast, but there’s no getting away from the fact that this season has been a difficult one for Miley. He has made 12 Premier League appearances, but they only total 242 mins; he is a cup winner but only played two minutes in the entire Carabao Cup campaign, and whilst he fared slightly better in the FA Cup the calibre of opposition [Brighton aside] never got above League One level.
Youth coaches up and down the land will tell anyone willing to listen that game time at the highest level available is vital to player development – hence the EFL Trophy having Premier League U21 sides play in it. From the outside looking in 2024/25 looks to have been a year in stall for Miley who has struggled to get gametime ahead of United’s lauded midfield three, and a lack of European football has impacted on him too as there hasn’t been the need to rotate. However, that has its downsides as we saw last weekend when the same starting eleven was named for the seventh game in a row – only for it to be dismantled by Aston Villa!
The future
Miley’s future to a bright one but there are a lot of factors that will impress upon it this summer. As with any academy graduate these days there is PSR related noise around the youngster, with Fabrizio Romano reporting recently that Premier League and Bundesliga sides are monitoring his situation.
However, Eddie Howe attempted to put that to bed in his Friday press conference when he spoke positively about Miley and wanting him ‘here with the squad’. He seemed absolutely adamant that the youngster was here to stay for many years and a big part of his plans.
Sean Longstaff could yet be another factor on Miley and his place in the squad – Sean, like Miley, has struggled to get into the team ahead of Bruno, Tonali and Joelinton, and he is another ‘pure profit’ academy graduate whose future could be reduced to nothing more than an accountant’s book value. Many would argue Miley should be ahead of Sean in the pecking order already but that still doesn’t appear to be the case when the subs are ready to come on.
There is the almost constant talk of a loan move for Miley, something which I think could be great for him as a soon-to-be 19-year-old, a full season playing gin the Championship for a side competing at the right end of the table could do him wonders – you just have to look down the road for how effective that can be on development with Chris Rigg. B
And then there is the also ever popular keep him around as squad backup, which feels the far more likely route next season. Qualifying for European competition probably makes this moot – but gametime with the midfield United possess is always going to be difficult. The new Champions League format affords you a couple of European sides from ‘smaller’ European leagues (Villa got Young Boys, Celtic and Brugge in the Group stage this season for example) there will surely be ample opportunities for Miley to show what he can do on a consistent level.
What is undoubtedly true, 2025/26 should be a huge season in the development of Lewis Miley’s career – one way or the other.
