'He inspired me' - Manchester United have lost their unsung hero at Carrington after 21 years of service

Neil Harris spent 21 years working for Man United's academy and helped mould several future first-team stars.

"Manchester United was life-changing. I was a working-class lad from Stretford and we went to Wales on holiday because we couldn't afford to go abroad," said Neil Harris.

"My dad worked three jobs. I've been to places with the club that I never thought I would visit and it's been a hundred per cent fun along the way, with some unbelievable experiences."

Harris worked for United for 21 years but left the academy this summer following a club-wide restructure initiated by Sir Jim Ratcliffe that made 250 staff members redundant. When Harris' departure was confirmed, he received personal messages from Scott McTominay, Anthony Elanga and Axel Tuanzebe, along with an outpouring of love and support that he was overwhelmed by.

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"I was blown away and couldn't reply to everyone," he admitted. "People were saying to me you should be so proud of the impact you've had. I've always thought a coach should want to be remembered for being a good person, a good developer and somebody who if a parent saw you in a pub, they're going to buy you a pint. That's what it's about."

The Manchester Evening News contacted Harris once the dust had settled on his exit from the club he dedicated his working life to. The emotion of his departure from the academy was still relatively raw but he kindly agreed to sit down for a chat in a coffee shop in Altrincham.

Harris can offer two decade's worth of insight into United's academy. There were countless highs, some lows and invaluable memories made during his time at the club, but most importantly, he has helped hundreds of children become better football players and better people.

"Coaching isn't just on the grass," Harris said. "At the start of every season we handed out a questionnaire to find out do they have a dog, do they do anything outside of school, do they have a single parent or does nana and grandad raise them? You make that human connection.

"When I speak to players who have played in World Cups, the Champions League and scored in the FA Cup final, they remember ice creams on the beach when we competed in the Mediterranean Cup, they remember Derek Langley jumping in the pool and donkey rides.

"I can guarantee you that they do not remember training sessions. Youth development is about connections, relationships and memories. Our secret was the simplicity of our coaching."

Harris is not someone who will blow his own trumpet, but he has been an unsung hero in the academy and United have lost a brilliant coach who deeply cares about young players.

The reaction to his departure was telling and a testimonial from McTominay read: "Neil is a wonderful coach who inspired and mentored me all the way through my academy journey.

"Every time I would see him around the training ground, it reminded me to be grateful for brilliant coaches like Neil are the starting point for many, many footballers around the country."

Elanga sent a two-minute video and his opening words gave Harris goosebumps. "He is a coach who not only shaped me into the footballer that I am today but the person I am. He helped me understand the sacrifices and values that I needed," said Elanga to the camera.

The winger, who is now starring for Nottingham Forest, also recalled a story from after an academy game when Harris made a speech that made something 'click' inside of him.

Harris said: "Anthony sent me a lovely video and he said 'come to a game, I'd love to see you'. He got me tickets for Nottingham Forest's game against Liverpool at Anfield and I took my dad and son with me, which was really nice. Anthony came on and played really, really well.

"As soon as the game finished, and this shows you how quickly players go on their phones, I was leaving the ground and received a text from him asking whether I was still here.

"He'd been looking into the away end trying to find me. His mum turned up and I'd not seen her for 10 years, so we had a big hug and were talking about how he was always late.

"Anthony finally came out, he saw me and his mum together and he went 'oh no' because he knew he was going to get stick for taking his time! But he gave me a lovely big hug.

"The first thing he said to me pretty much was he should have scored. He said he should have chipped it and I said yep, but he knew anyway. He told me he thought about me in the away end when he missed that chance... I'm a coach from years ago and it gave me chills.

"When we signed Anthony, I got a phone call from Derek Langley to say we've got a boy here who has just landed in Hyde. I remember going to his first game and phoning him back after 25 minutes to say we need to sign him right now and that was the old-school recruitment.

"He came from Sweden with his mum, he didn't speak much English and was very quiet, but I used to sing a chant with his name and say they're going to sign that song for you one day.

"In the video he sent me, he said 'do you remember that chant you made for me? It made me feel brilliant'. Forest sing a song that is similar now and it's the little things like that."

United have released an academy documentary series named 'Lifeblood' this year and the second episode reflects on McTominay's development. "They proposed the idea to Scott and what was really lovely was that he said, 'is Neil Harris around? Can Neil do it with me," Harris explained.

"He said it was best to speak to somebody who lived it and breathed it with him. Scott was a wonderful player and just a wonderful character and one of the things I mentioned in the documentary was we knew he'd be okay because his mum and dad were so switched on.

"It's not a coincidence that most of the people who 'make it' have support networks, people who are relaxed around them. His dad, Frank, is a brilliant person and his mum trusted us impeccably with him. If we didn't bring him on a tour, we explained why and there was no fuss.

"Scott was an early developer in terms of his talent, but he stalled a bit because of his growth and injuries, but that's why I think he'll have a career until he's 34 or 35. He looks after himself and because his maturation was so late, he can probably play until whenever he wants.

"And I am telling you now, he will be an unbelievable success in Naples. I spoke to him the other day and he's loving it. I told him when he was moving that they'd love him over there because his DNA is work rate and desire and honestly, I think his career has been very underrated."

McTominay has been a huge success since moving to Italy and Napoli are currently top of Serie A with Antonio Conte in charge. "I still refer to Sir Alex as the gaffer and he always had a role for Darren Fletcher, Park Ji-sung, Gary and Phil Neville, players who he could rely upon.

"Scott was one of those players for me. I remember watching a behind closes doors game at Carrington and I think it was against Everton not too long ago, and Scott was head and shoulders above everyone on the pitch. All of us who worked with him always had his corner.

"I remember I went over to the first-team building for a meeting last year and he jumped on me in the canteen and said we need you back over here, we need your energy, Neil."

McTominay and Elanga are just two from hundreds of professional players that Harris has played a small part in helping on their respective journeys. "Ravel Morrison is the best I've worked with," he said. "Mason Greenwood was very, very close to that level, if not on par with him.

"The manager always said he was the best kid he saw and when people say Ravel didn't fulfil his potential, that's not true. Paul McGuiness always talks well and he says because of where he came from and his circumstances, he was one of the biggest successes you can have."

Harris was also there for the beginning of Marcus Rashford's journey and has watched the 26-year-old develop from a boy into someone who has made more than 400 United appearances.

"I used to pick Marcus up four times a week before we had transport and logistics," he said. "Me and Stuart Leicester would take him and I would love to give a mention to Stuart because we worked in tandem for 20 years and he has also just left his role in the academy.

"Marcus would never be ready and his mum Melanie used to be like, he's coming, he's coming! When he was ready early, he would stand there doing kick-ups and stuff on the grass.

"He'd fall asleep immediately in the car and then fall asleep on the way back. His brothers would drop him off as well and there was a time when he ate dinner at mine with my kids.

"Years later when Marcus scored on his Premier League debut against Arsenal, my oldest was working in Thailand and watching the game. He phoned me and asked was that little Marcus?

"When Marcus won an award for his charity work, he had to nominate people who had helped him in life and he nominated me and Stuart, so he does remember things like that."

Kobbie Mainoo is the most recent biggest academy success story after Alejandro Garnacho and Rashford, and Harris remembers a smiley, mischievous Mainoo when he was a boy.

"We made an academy trip to Boston and one day the snow had piled up," he said. "Tony Whelan went with us and he is one the best child developers, mentors and educators. He has been my mentor all this time and Nick Cox was there with us too, I think he'd only just joined.

"We said to the lads, listen, there's all snow out there now, so no snowball fights... So what happens next? Tony's the biggest kid out of them all and the kids come out and hit him.

"A big snowball fight breaks out and after five minutes, I remember saying right, time to stop now. All the kids went silent and a moment later, boom, a snowball hits me.

"I turn around and it's Kobbie. He was like that and would always have the last word on things like that. If you speak to Kobbie now, he'll remember Boston because we visited the Patriots' ground, we played American football on the Patriots pitch and it was just a fantastic trip.

"Player development is all about creating memories. Holistic coaching, holistic learning and when the players know you care about them as people, they buy into what you're trying to do.

"Before I left, he shouted me over at the training ground and I said I think you're going to the Euros, mate. He said he was hopeful but he wasn't sure, and I replied Kobbie, you're going to that tournament. England don't have anyone like you and you give us something different."

Harris continued: "When I see Kobbie's dad, Felix, at a game now he gives me a massive hug and when I see Ethan Wheatley's dad, it's the same. You don't get that if you've not been a good person and you've not had an effect and made a real difference in changing their lives.

"When you've been at the club so long, each season morphs into the next and before you know it, these young lads are men in their 20s. It's only recently when I've come out of it that I've looked back and it's been overwhelming when people have said you changed my life.

"Elite international players have left lovely voice messages and sent messages, but I get as much thrill when someone who's playing in the Conference messages to say he's still playing and fighting."

It's clear from talking to Harris that developing people is equally as important as developing players and without knowing, he helped an academy graduate overcome his stutter.

The player has now left United and stopped Harris in the Carrington car park when he was leaving to reflect on a moment when he made a speech to his peers at a youth tournament.

When Harris reflects on his time with United, he is immensely proud of teaching the history of the Busby Babes. "I worked with Dave Bushell on the Munich project every year," he said.

"We don't just talk about the crash, we talk about the immediate impact on not only the football side of things but the community and Manchester as a whole. We talk about how clubs offered players to us and how United were rebuilt to win the European Cup 10 years later.

"We get the lads to draw players out of a hat, read who they are, say whether they survived, and we get them to go and find information for themselves to create a poster of it.

"Dave rang me the other day and said he was just preparing the Munich stuff. He told me I had to come to Old Trafford for the anniversary and that project is something I'll miss.

"There's loads of other things, like going up Snowden. We used to take them up as a team-building exercise and you might have young lads who are just coming back from an injury.

"We had one boy who came back from an ACL injury and he climbed it. Tony Whelan did it last year aged 70 and we hold up the United flag when we get to the top of the mountain.

"When I talk to other coaches, that's the information I pass on. Coach development is about getting as good as you can, doing great sessions, but it's not all about grass."

Harris worked under nine different managers - including two caretakers and one interim manager - and was recently invited to watch Michael Carrick take Middlesbrough training.

"Sir Alex would take a real interest in the players. He would know the players early doors and when they were in the first-team canteen, he would sit down with them," he explained.

"His knowledge was ridiculous, he was highly educated and highly skilled. His man management was unbelievable. The parents trusted him, players trusted him and we trusted him a million per cent.

"Then David Moyes came in and probably didn't get the remit in terms of understanding the club. Then there were managers who knew they had to get results straight away.

"When Ole was in charge, you could definitely feel him wanting to know more. Whether he had the time to do that, I'm not sure, but he did want to support academy players.

"I'm a Stretford lad, I used to live right next to the ground and used to think, I've got the United manager's number in the phone, which would be mad when you're a kid."

Since leaving United, Harris has been keeping himself busy and is assessing offers before deciding his next step. "I joined United as a very, very young coach and it was a golden period for the club. The Manchester United way was people, the culture and how we approached things," he said.

"Les Kershaw, Tony Whelan and Brian McClair never asked us what the score was in youth games. They would ask who was doing well and who was maybe struggling a little bit.

"I was a part-time coach for 16 years, while also working a full-time job and raising a young family, so it was tough to do. United had asked me to go full-time a couple of times but the timing wasn't right. I eventually became full-time five years ago and I loved it, it was great.

"Obviously with the way it's ended, it has been disappointing with the restructure and things like that, but it's fine, it is football, I understand it and I'm excited for what's next.

"It's a different world out there now. I was always the coach under the Manchester United brand, you followed the syllabus, the philosophy, the methodology and everything like that.

"You're so institutionalised, always wanting the best for the club and the players, and you probably put your personal development on the back burner at times. The LCA and LMA have been unbelievable since I left and they've given me incredible support during the whole process.

"At events, I've been asked about how many players I produced for the first-team, but I want to talk about the human development, the really bespoke games program that I developed that nobody else was doing in the country and I feel a bit cringey doing this article in a way.

"It can be a bit uncomfortable speaking about yourself, but hopefully it's a nice piece for readers to get insight into what has happened in the academy down the years and relationships."

Harris was an unsung hero in the academy. United have lost a true youth developer.