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A trio of Manchester United starlets are set to train with INEOS-owned FC Lausanne-Sport in a “first of its kind” agreement.
As per the Manchester Evening News, academy prospects Habeeb Ogunneye, Jack Kingdon and Ethan Williams are now in Switzerland and will train with Lausanne’s first team.
Lausanne was INEOS’s first foray into football club ownership, with the acquisition completed in 2017.
Since then Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s business purchased Ligue 1 outfit OGC Nice, and in February the English businessman completed his partial 27.7% investment into Manchester United.
The MEN describe United’s agreement with Lausanne as “the first of its kind”, and add that an academy trip to Nice earlier in the year was considered a huge success.
The three 18-year-olds are among the hottest prospects in the United academy where they are making “strong progress”, and have been rewarded with the chance to “gain experience with a senior squad thanks to United’s agreement”.
Relegation-threated Lausanne are languishing in 10th place in the 12-team Swiss Super League, but the chance to join up with a senior team will no doubt be fantastic experience for the youngsters.
Not that they are totally new to rubbing shoulders with first-teamers, having all been called up by Erik ten Hag to join training sessions with his Premier League charges.
Right-back Ogunneye is the furthest advanced of the trio, having featured in several matchday squads towards the end of last season.
Kingdon, who mostly plays at centre-back, is taking great strides, swapping the treble-winning U18s for the U21s this campaign after signing his first professional deal in the summer.
And Williams was prolific for the academy side last season, bagging 17 goals and making nine assists.
Should the arrangement prove a success, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see more academy talent make the trip to Switzerland in the coming years.
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