The Irishman left Spurs to coach the Red Devils’ Under-18s.
New Manchester United Under-18s coach Kieran McKenna has told the club’s official website that transitioning into his new job should not be too difficult, having previously worked at a club with similar values in Tottenham Hotspur.
McKenna, a former player with Spurs, swapped White Hart Lane for Old Trafford at the start of the month, having supported United as a boy.
The Irishman, whose career was cut short aged 23, is credited with having helped to deliver the conveyor belt of young talent currently starring in Mauricio Pochettino’s first team.
And United, another club famed for placing its faith in youth, will be keen for McKenna to make his mark, with the production line appearing to dry up until very recently.
“I think there is a way of doing things in youth development and Tottenham and United have very similar views on that,” McKenna told United’s official website on Tuesday.
“There is an importance placed on developing the individual and generating outstanding individuals who can play in the first team as a main priority. Also it’s a case of developing good people to go on and be successful at lower levels of football or in other walks of life.
“I think both clubs have got really similar underlying principles so there are also similar ways of playing and doing things. So hopefully it will not be too difficult to transfer to this job because there are a lot of shared values there.”
Previous United boss Louis van Gaal handed debuts to 15 academy products during his two-year Old Trafford reign, however a number of those have since fallen by the wayside.
That said, at least two of those, Jesse Lingard and Marcus Rashford, appear to feature prominently in the plans of Van Gaal’s successor Jose Mourinho.
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