Manchester United have a new candidate to be next academy debutant after Ruben Amorim decision

Ruben Amorim was at Carrington to watch Manchester United Under-21s end their year on a high by beating Southampton 4-1 in Premier League 2.

Travis Binnion's team were playing the Saints at the training ground rather than Leigh Sports Village and Amorim was an interested observer on the touchline, taking time out from preparing the first-team for Sunday's Manchester derby.

Amorim stood with first-team coach Darren Fletcher, technical director Jason Wilcox and director of academy Nick Cox. One of the attractions of Amorim to United was the faith he has shown previously in young players and his presence at an U-21 game would have been encouraging for young players trying to catch the eye.

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Fewer United youngsters have been called up to senior training recently, with the injury issues easing for Amorim and Luke Shaw now the only player on the treatment table, but he was still taking an interest in the players coming through the system.

It was a dominant performance for Binnion's side, with captain Dan Gore scoring a goal and creating two more, while Ethan Wheatley curled in a brilliant finish to make it 4-0. Both Gore and Wheatley have had first-team experience for United.

Tyler Fletcher also scored in the first half, while Jack Moorhouse netted twice after the break and it is the 19-year-old who caught the eye most of all as he continued his fine run of form.

Wearing the No. 10 shirt and playing in an advanced midfield role, Moorhouse again showed his ability to drive through the middle with the ball and he produced an energetic performance. His first goal saw him run on to an excellent Gore pass and finish smartly, while his second was a superb individual goal.

Moorhouse started it with another driving run through the midfield, then when the ball return to him he showed quick feet in the box to find space for a shot and found the back of the net to round off the scoring.

The midfielder was making only his fourth appearance in Premier League 2 this season and it was the first time he had started a game, but he impressed in United's recent National League Cup games and is beginning to progress through the ranks. He will certainly have caught the eye of Amorim on Saturday.