Man Utd U21s discover their Papa John's Trophy group stage opponents

Manchester United's U21s have discovered their opponents for the group stages of this season's Papa John's Trophy.

The Football League Trophy sees teams from Leagues One and Two compete against 16 academy teams from the Premier League. The EFL's move to introduce Premier League development squads into the competition caused controversy among lower league supporters who deemed it unfair that they would have to compete against top-flight clubs.

However, since being introduced, no Premier League development squad has made it to the final of the competition. The group stages of the Papa John's Trophy are divided into north and south sections with only one Premier League development squad featuring in each group.

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United's U21s have been drawn into Group G alongside Cumbrian clubs Barrow and Carlisle United as well as Fleetwood Town. The first round of matches in the competition will take place on the week commencing August 31.

Mark Dempsey will be taking over the U23s next season. Dempsey must make sure that a minimum of six players in his starting line-up are under the age of 21 and that only a maximum of two players in the starting line-up are over 21 and have played 40 or more senior appearances in their careers.
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