There’s been some major highs and lows for the Manchester United squad that won the FA Youth Cup in 2022

Manchester United will take on Manchester City in the FA Youth Cup final on Thursday, with United looking to win the tournament for the first time since 2022. United are the most successful club in Youth Cup history, having won the competition 11 times.

However, they’ve only won it twice since the turn of the Millennium, showing what an achievement the 2022 triumph was. The 3-1 victory over Nottingham Forest four years ago showcased a host of talent on United’s books.

From players who have generated mega-money sales for United to those who have made the step-up to the first team, MEN takes a closer look at where the squad of the 2022 winning team are now.

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Radek Vitek – goalkeeper

Vitek was the goalkeeper who started in the 2022 FA Youth Cup Final. The 23-year-old Czech Republic star is still on United’s books but has yet to make a first-team appearance. He has been loaned out to Bristol City this season, starting 41 games for the Championship side.

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Marc Jurado – Right back

Jurado, 22, started at right-back in the 2022 final. However, United sold the former Barcelona youngster on transfer deadline day of 2023 to Espanyol. He later joined FC Cartagena, who play their football in the Spanish third tier.

Louis Jackson – Centre-back

Centre-back Jackson was a key performer against Forest. The 20-year-old remains at Carrington, where he continues to impress. He spent this season on loan at National League side Solihull Moors.

Rhys Bennett – Centre-back

Bennett scored United’s first goal in the FA Youth Cup Final and lifted the trophy. The 22-year-old made the first team bench under ex-United boss Erik ten Hag but failed to get on the pitch. He has spent time on loan at Stockport County and signed for Fleetwood Town this year.

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Sam Murray – Left-back

Left-back Murray, 21, signed a new contract with United in 2023 but was released by the club in 2025. Murray has since signed with National League side Carlisle United.

Kobbie Mainoo- Centre-midfield

One of the gems of the 2022 winning side, Mainoo scored the winner in the FA Youth Cup final and has become a mainstay in United’s first team. He started England’s clash with Spain in the Euro 2024 final and signed a new five-year deal with United recently after impressing under interim boss Michael Carrick.

Dan Gore – Centre-midfield

The 21-year-old centre-midfielder made his United senior debut in the Carabao Cup victory against Crystal Palace in 2023 but hasn’t been spotted in the first-team since. Gore is on his third loan stint at Rotherham United, where he has made 34 appearances this season.

Isak Hansen-Aaroen –Attacking-midfield

The 21-year-old attacking midfielder was highly regarded at United. However, after failing to make a first-team appearance, the Norwegian joined Werder Bremen in early 2024. He was subsequently loaned out to Danish club Aalborg before signing permanently with Dutch outfit NEC Nijmegen this year.

Sam Mather – Right-wing

The versatile winger, 21, played right wing in the FA Youth Cup final and had brief loan spells at Rochdale and Tranmere Rovers following. However, he left United for Turkish club Kayserispor in January 2026, where he has made two appearances this season.

Alejandro Garnacho – Left-wing

Garnacho was another major success from the Youth Cup-winning team. He scored twice in the game, which was a launch pad for his career at Old Trafford. Garnacho scored 26 first-team goals in 144 appearances for United, including a goal in the 2024 FA Cup Final. He left for Chelsea last summer for £40million.

Charlie McNeill – striker

McNeil, 22, was a prolific goalscorer in United’s youth ranks. He netted 600 goals at youth level for Manchester City before moving United. He played a key role in the club’s journey to the Youth Cup Final but signed for Sheffield Wednesday in 2024, where he has become a regular, scoring six times in 50 games.

Substitutes

Sonny Aljofree – The 21-year-old came on as an 86th-minute substitute in the game and is still at United. He spent this season on loan at Notts County.

Maxi Oyedele – Oyedele is now a fully fledged Polish international who plays for Strasbourg after leaving United in 2024. He came on as a 64th-minute substitute in the 2022 final.

Joe Hugill – After several loan spells, Hugill, 22, joined Kilmarnock this year.

Logan Pye – Logan Pye, 22, played for United for three years in the youth ranks before sealing a permanent move to Burnley in September 2023.

Tom Wooster – The 21-year-old goalkeeper was released by United in the summer of 2025 to join West Ham United.

Omari Forson – Forson made four appearances for the United first team but the 21-year-old winger left the club for Italian side Monza in 2024 on a free transfer.

Ethan Ennis – Ennis, 21, started out at United’s rivals Liverpool but moved to United in 2017 and is still on the club’s books. The highly-rated winger has been out on loan at Doncaster Rovers and Fleetwood Town over the last two seasons.

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Manchester City midfielders Nico Gonzalez and Rodri both missed the Premier League win over Crystal Palace on Wednesday

Pep Guardiola said that Nico Gonzalez would be available for selection for the FA Cup final on Saturday but could not confirm that Rodri would be. Both missed the 3-0 Premier League win over Crystal Palace on Wednesday night that keeps alive City’s title hopes.

Six changes from Guardiola made clear that the FA Cup is their priority in the final fortnight of the season, yet he was unable to call on Rodri again. The Spaniard hasn’t played or even made a squad since the win over Arsenal last month after picking up a groin injury and it remains unclear if he will be fit enough to feature again for the Blues before their season ends.

Gonzalez will be hoping to be involved at Wembley after smashing in a fantastic winner in the FA Cup semi-final against Southampton, yet he found himself out of the matchday squad against Palace despite not being injured. Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden started in midfield, while Mateo Kovacic came off the bench.

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“He’s fine but I have to leave a lot of players out because we are the whole squad ready, and sometimes they’re there,” said Guardiola. “Nico, he brings us to the final of the FA Cup, right? With his fantastic goal, and all season he’s played that position. But in the last game I saw Bernie [Silva], I liked a lot how he played there, and that’s why I decided to do it again.”

City’s win leaves them two points behind Arsenal with two Premier League games left. The league leaders host Burnley on Monday night and then the Blues are at Bournemouth a day later hoping to end a 16-game unbeaten run for the Cherries.

Crystal Palace could have another say in the title race as they host Arsenal on the final day of the season, but whether it gets that far will depend on the midweek results. City play at home to Aston Villa on the final day, who will have been in the Europa League final a few days earlier.

The United States has announced exemptions from visa bond payment requirements for FIFA World Cup ticket holders whose teams have qualified for the soccer tournament.

In 2025, the Trump administration began requiring visitors to the US from certain countries to pay bonds of between $5,000 (€4,300) and $15,000 to obtain a tourist visa.

The bond requirement scheme was expanded in 2026 to include 50 countries. 

Five of the 50 countries subject to visa bonds qualified for the World Cup:  Algeria, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast, Senegal and Tunisia.

The State Department announced on Wednesday that the US would waive the bond requirement for fans from qualifying countries. They must hold valid tickets and have already registered through a special system, known as FIFA PASS, to expedite their visa processing.

The administration is “waiving visa bonds for qualified fans who bought World Cup tickets and opted in to FIFA PASS as of April 15, 2026,” US Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs Mora Namdar said in a statement.

Fans from some World Cup teams still subject to bans

The waiver doesn’t change much for fans from Senegal and Ivory Coast, which have been on a list of countries with partial restrictions on entry to the US since December 2025.

This partial ban means that fans who didn’t have a visa before December won’t be granted a visitor visa to travel to the US to watch their teams play.

Fans from World Cup qualifying teams Haiti and Iran are still banned from entering the US under a full suspension of visas from these two countries.

The travel bans and visa bond requirements don’t apply to World Cup players, coaches and some staff.

Fears of US immigration crackdowns during World Cup

The bond waiver is a rare temporary loosening of immigration requirements under the administration of US President Donald Trump.

It will partially ease travel burdens for some visitors to the US for the World Cup, which kicks off on June 11. It is being co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States, where three-quarters of the tournament’s matches (78 games) are being played.

The Trump administration’s aggressive crackdown on immigration has already cast a pall over the tournament amid fan concerns about the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers.

In late April, the advocacy group Human Rights Watch called on FIFA to press ‌the Trump administration to establish an “ICE Truce” for the World Cup, including a public guarantee to refrain from immigration enforcement operations at games and venues.

DHS said at the time that international visitors ⁠traveling for the games “have nothing to worry about” if they have legal immigration status. That statement came despite people with legal immigration status in the US — and some US citizens — being swept up and detained during ICE raids.

Edited by: Sean Sinico

Five years ago, the Minnesota Vikings employed a promising young tight end named Shane Zylstra, who later departed the franchise for the Detroit Lions, where he stayed for five seasons, believe it or not. Now, Zylstra is on his way to Buffalo.

Detroit became the landing spot where Zylstra finally stuck around for multiple seasons.

The Bills added some TE depth this week, and his name is Zylstra.

Buffalo Adds Another Pass-Catching Option for Camp

Zylstra goes from a contender to … a contender

The BUF Move

Buffalo Rumblings‘ Chris Trapasso detailed the transaction on Tuesday: “The Buffalo Bills have made another post-draft signing, this time it’s on offense — former Lions tight end Shane Zylstra has been added on a one-year contract.”

“Zylstra started his carer with the Vikings but was cut at the end of his August before being signed by the Lions. He spent the 2021 – 2025 seasons in Detroit as one of the depth tight ends on the roster. All four of his touchdowns came in 2022.”

It’s a fresh start for the 29-year-old.

The Career Production

Zylstra certainly isn’t a volume pass-catching tight end, but the Lions loved him. These are his numbers through five seasons:

• 2025: 3 Rec | 20 Yds | 0 TDs
• 2024: 1 Rec | 22 Yds | 0 TDs
• 2023: DNP
• 2022: 11 Rec | 60 Yds | 4 TDs
• 2021: 3 Rec | 34 Yds | 0 TDs

And the Pro Football Focus track record:

• 2025: 44.0
• 2024: 49.6
• 2023: DNP
• 2022: 59.2
• 2021: 53.5

The easiest way to think of Zylstra is a quintessential TE3. When a team needs a depth tight end after two main guys, turn to Zylstra.

Pride of Detroit‘s Brandon Knapp on Zylstra’s 2025 campaign: “As the third-string option, the expectations weren’t very high for Zylstra in 2025. The year before he played in 12 games and only caught one pass for a yard. He wasn’t used often on offense and only saw his role increase if LaPorta or Wright were out with an injury. He was more of a receiver-styled tight end that did block particularly well. With the team loving tight ends that can do both, he was limited in what the team saw in him.”

“For a majority of the year, Zylstra was on the injured reserved list. After suffering the ankle injury against the Chicago Bears in Week 2, Zylstra didn’t return until Week 15. Zylstra got all of his receiving stats for the year against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 16. While he had more offensive snaps than special teams, that was because before he suffered the injury, he had 13 special teams snaps to his six offensive and the tight ends above him were healthy. Once he returned, the others weren’t there and he was forced to play more offense than special teams.”

Bills’ New TE Room

With Zylstra in the house for Josh Allen’s team, here’s the lay of the land at tight end:

• Dalton Kincaid
• Dawson Knox
• Jackson Hawes
• Keleki Latua
• Shane Zylstra

Zylstra certainly won’t supplant Kincaid or Knox, but he has a chance to overtake Hawes or pray the Bills keep four tight ends instead of three.

Bills’ New Faces in 2026

The Bills were quite busy this offseason — busier than the Vikings during free agency — adding these newcomers:

• Dee Alford, CB (ATL → BUF)
• Kyle Allen, QB (DET → BUF)
• Austin Corbett, C (CAR → BUF)
• Bradley Chubb, EDGE (MIA → BUF)
• Lloyd Cushenberry, C (TEN → BUF)
• Michael Danna, EDGE (KC → BUF)
• Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, S (CHI → BUF)
• Trent Sherfield, WR (MIN → BUF)
• Geno Stone, S (CIN → BUF)
• Ben VanSumeren, FB (PHI → BUF)
• Shane Zylstra, TE (DET → BUF)

And from the draft, general manager Brandon Beane welcomed these rookies:

• Round 2: T.J. Parker (EDGE, Clemson)
• Round 2: Davison Igbinosun (CB, Ohio State)
• Round 4: Jude Bowry (OT, Boston College)
• Round 4: Skyler Bell (WR, Connecticut)
• Round 4: Kaleb Elarms-Orr (LB, TCU)
• Round 5: Jalon Kilgore (CB, South Carolina)
• Round 5: Zane Durant (DT, Penn State)
• Round 7: Toriano Pride Jr. (CB, Missouri)
• Round 7: Tommy Doman (P, Florida)
• Round 7: Ar’maj Reed-Adams (G, Texas A&M)

Zylstra will turn 30 in November and is from Spicer, Minnesota. He attended Minnesota State University — Adam Thielen’s alma mater.

Ironically, Zylstra already knows when he’ll face his former team in 2026, as MLive’s Kory Woods wrote Tuesday, “Despite moving on from Detroit, Zylstra will see his former teammates later in the year. Earlier this week, Amazon Prime Video announced that the Lions will play the Bills in Week 2 this season, starting the streaming platform’s Thursday Night Football coverage on Sept. 17.”

Dustin Baker is a novelist and political scientist. His second novel, The Invaders , is out now. So is … More about Dustin Baker

May 11, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) during the second half in game four of the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

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TNT Tropang 5G’s Bol Bol and Jordan Heading during a game against NLEX Road Warriors in the 2026 PBA Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

TNT managed to force another playdate into its PBA Commissioner’s Cup campaign by coming up with a tournament-saving victory on Wednesday.

Now, the Tropang Giga will have to squeeze out one more win against a formidable top seed to validate its preconference status as a favorite to win the title.

And it’s not going to get easier.

“We’re happy with this win, but we need a lot of improvement to get to the next stage,” coach Chot Reyes said after TNT’s 96-93 victory over NLEX at Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

For starters, the Tropang 5G led by as many as 10 and were up seven midway through the fourth, but lost control of the match amid a furious rally by the Road Warriors.

And to think that somewhere at the tail end of that fight-back, NLEX lost main man Robert Bolick to fouls.

Bol Bol had a split at the stripe for a 94-93 lead, and the Tropang 5G survived a crucial turnover by veteran Jayson Castro to forge the victory and force NLEX to fish out its twice-to-beat card.

NLEX had two chances to reverse the outcome, but LJ Gonzales missed a pressured four-pointer, and Schonny Winston blew a midrange jumper he had a clean look at, allowing TNT to set another practice date.

A first for TNT

Bol finished with another double-double, collecting 34 points and 14 rebounds to lead TNT, which also got solid support from its locals. Calvin Oftana chipped in 19, RR Pogoy had 15 and Castro added 14 for the Tropang 5G.

“I think this is the first game in the whole conference where we had those three guys hit double digits,” said Reyes.

“The three of them got double figures, and as long as we can get that help around Bol, then we give ourselves better chances of winning.”

Bolick finished with 15 points, four assists and three rebounds for NLEX.

“It’s a big factor that Bolick wasn’t there in the endgame,” Reyes said.

Cady Lalanne led the Road Warriors with 17 points and 15 rebounds, but missed a free throw that would have put his team up by one late in the game. Young guns Xyrus Torres and Gonzales added 14 and 13, respectively.

The NFL has found yet another day to take over.

The league announced Wednesday its inaugural Thanksgiving Eve game will be played this year between the Green Bay Packers and Los Angeles Rams on Netflix.

A few years ago, the NFL realized Black Friday could be an option for fans to gather around their televisions, and it found another because hometown bars will be packed the night before the big holiday.

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Teams line up at the line of scrimmage during a game between the Green Bay Packers and the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., Oct. 6, 2024. (Jevone Moore/Icon Sportswire)

The NFL has dipped its toe into holidays, also becoming the new king of Christmas.

The Packers and Rams played each other each season from 2020 to 2024 (the 2020 campaign bout was during the playoffs) but did not face off in 2025.

The Packers have walloped the Rams in recent memory, winning 16 of their last 21 meetings dating back to 1992, including 10 of their last 11.

Netflix and NFL signage advertises the NFL’s two Christmas Day marquee games streaming live on Netflix in New Orleans Dec. 1, 2024. (Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Images)

AN NFL GAME THE NIGHT BEFORE THANKSGIVING IS OFFICIALLY ‘TOO MUCH FOOTBALL’

Oddly enough, before their 2024 bout, each of their prior four meetings was in Green Bay, but this will now mark back-to-back contests in Los Angeles.

The last time the two teams met Oct. 6, 2024, Tucker Kraft had two touchdowns for the Packers, including one that went for 66 yards.

An NFL game ball rests on the turf before a play during a game between the Green Bay Packers and the Detroit Lions at Ford Field in Detroit Nov. 27, 2025. (Scott W. Grau/Icon Sportswire)

The Rams tried their best at a fourth-quarter comeback, but Green Bay came away with a 24-19 victory on the road.

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The game will be broadcast on Netflix. The streaming service will also broadcast the Rams’ Week 1 game against the San Francisco 49ers in Australia, two Christmas games and a Week 18 Saturday game.

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Nikita Shulchenko is the MPTC Tour of Luzon champion. –JONAS TERRADO

BAGUIO—Nikita Shulchenko admitted he felt the pressure when Antoine Huby launched a desperate attack that won the final stage of the MPTC Tour of Luzon on Wednesday here.

But the Russian rider of Filipino-owned LCW UAE Cycle had built enough of a cushion to withstand Huby’s late charge and secure the title in this year’s revival of the country’s premier cycling race, which he had controlled almost from the start.

READ: Tour of Luzon: Nikita Shulchenko seals overall title in Baguio

“Yes, it was very dangerous,” Shulchenko said after emerging as the newest champion of the summer cycling spectacle with an aggregate time of 41 hours, 11 minutes and 10 seconds.

“But I had a [big] gap [going into the last stage],” he added.

The 26-year-old held off the French rider from 7-Eleven Roadbike Philippines by one minute and 34 seconds to pocket the P1 million prize and, perhaps, earn lasting recognition among Filipino cycling fans who had hoped a local rider would repel the foreign challenge.

Shulchenko also earned himself a neat early birthday gift ahead of his 27th birthday on May 31—even if he will have little time to celebrate.

Back home in Russia, Shulchenko said the calendar quickly shifts to more multistage races at this time of year, leaving little opportunity to savor a conquest that saw him dominate the Philippines’ great cycling odyssey.

Nikita Shukchenco at the finish line during Stage 14 of the MPTC Tour of Luzon. –CONTRIBUTED PHoTO

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“In Russia, we have to do multi-stage races at this time of the year, so there’s plenty of work to do,” he said after completing the two-week test of speed and endurance that covered 1,825.10 kilometers across 13 provinces.

Shulchenko stamped his authority on the race with a victory in the Stage 7 individual time trial in Pagudpud, while adding five runner-up finishes along the way.

He first donned the symbolic yellow jersey after Stage 3, wresting it from Syrian teammate Ibrahiem Alrefai—whom he had allowed to win the opening stage in Tagaytay—and never surrendered it again.

The early threats came from the Filipino contingent, particularly the brash crowd favorite Mervin Corpuz and fellow 7-Eleven standout Ronnilan Quita.

But as the race entered its decisive stretch, Huby emerged as Shulchenko’s biggest danger.

Lead too big

Nikita Shulchenko receives his trophy and P1 million as winner of the 2026 MPTC Tour of Luzon during the closing ceremonies here in Baguio #TourOfLuzon2026 | @jonasterradoINQ pic.twitter.com/pufahTfZhL

— INQUIRER Sports (@inquirersports) May 13, 2026

The former UCI World Tour rider captured the punishing Stage 10 and Stage 12 climbs at Bessang Pass in Cervantes, Ilocos Sur, and Daang Kalikasan in Mangatarem, Pangasinan, slicing the overall deficit to just 2 minutes and 30 seconds.

Still, Shulchenko responded when it mattered most.

He finished second in the second individual time trial in Lingayen while Huby could do no better than 13th, allowing the Russian to widen his lead to 3:50 heading into the final ascent through Kennon Road toward Baguio City.

Antoine Huby is the Stage 14 winner, but not enough to beat Nikita Shulchenko, who is the 2026 MPTC Tour of Luzon champion #TourOfLuzon2026 | @jonasterradoINQ pic.twitter.com/1H6fHDJepr

— INQUIRER Sports (@inquirersports) May 13, 2026

That advantage proved too large to erase, even as Huby ended the Tour with three stage victories—the most by any rider.

The Frenchman made one final gamble after passing the iconic Lion’s Head marker with 15 km remaining, breaking clear on the climb toward Camp John Hay.

Huby completed the grueling 181.8-km stage from Lingayen to Camp John Hay in 4:26:42, but his bid to steal the yellow jersey ultimately fell short when Shulchenko crossed the line 2:12 later.

“I’m happy to finish second, but the objective was to get the yellow jersey,” Huby said. “But I did my best.”

As consolation, Huby secured the Eagle of the Mountain title as the Tour’s best climber.

Alrefai wound up third overall, 6:45 behind his teammate, while MPT DriveHub’s Nash Lim finished fourth at 9:13, emerging as the top Filipino rider after a late surge in the standings.

Quita placed fifth overall, 10:34 off the lead, after arguably delivering the most consistent campaign among the local riders.