Man Utd wonderkid Elyh Harrison follows Dean Henderson’s steps as he inches closer to next move…
For young Manchester United goalkeepers, the template to look at to succeed in professional football is Dean Henderson, and Elyh Harrison is doing that.
Dean Henderson ground his way through the football leagues in England, starting at Stockport, and making it all the way to Crystal Palace and the English national team via stops at Grimsby, Shrewsbury, and Sheffield United.
It can be easily argued that he even should be at Man Utd today, considering he’s been clearly better than Andre Onana, but nevertheless, he’s done extremely well for himself.
Now, Elyh Harrison, the next big thing in United’s goalkeeping ranks, has started walking on the path Henderson laid out.
Dean Henderson of Manchester United warms up ahead of the Premier League match between Manchester United and Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford on August 26, 2023
Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images
Elyh Harrison follows Dean Henderson’s path
For young goalkeepers, getting senior football is even more important than for an outfielder, since there’s only one position up for grabs in the senior team.
The likelihood of a goalkeeper breaking through into the senior team directly from the academy and staying there is extremely thin.
Therefore, Harrison spent the first half of last season on loan at Chester in the National League North/South, the sixth tier of English football.
Harrison shone at Chester, and was recalled by United for the latter half of the season. Those displays at Chester haven’t gone unnoticed, however.
More United News
Talksports reports that Harrison is now set to join Shrewsbury on loan, in a move that Henderson made when he was breaking through at Old Trafford.
Highly-rated young #MUFC goalkeeper Elyh Harrison is joining Shrewsbury on loan.
— Alex Crook ⚽️🎙 (@alex_crook) July 21, 2025
View Tweet
Shrewsbury play in League Two, so, much like Henderson, Harrison has managed a jump up the divisions by impressing on his previous loan spell.
He will hope to do the same in League Two, since Henderson’s next move was to Sheffield United in the Championship, before staying with them in the Premier League.
He hasn’t looked back since.
Man Utd’s rich goalkeeping ranks
It is ironic that a club struggling for a first-choice senior goalkeeper is flush with options in the academy.
If the position in question wasn’t that of a goalkeeper, then an academy prospect would have been drafted to the senior team without hesitation, so rich are United’s options.
Just because the position is so intensely scrutinised, United are having to be extra careful to season their youngsters before throwing them in at the deep end at Old Trafford.
Radek Vitek shone on loan last season like Harrison, and he did so at a much higher level, but even he’s been deemed not ready.
At some point, United will need to be wary about repeating the mistake they made with Henderson and throw the dice on Harrison or Vitek.
That clock is ticking, and the decision time might come, especially for Vitek, as soon as next summer. For now, Harrison will be keenly watched at Shrewsbury.
Leave a Reply