Manchester United sent another young goalkeeper out on loan this week, and this one comes with a last name that might ring a bell.
Solomon Honor, a 20-year-old shot-stopper who only joined United back in February, is heading to Southport FC in the National League North for the season. Southport announced the move on their social channels with the kind of enthusiasm you’d expect from a club getting a giant 6-foot-5 keeper from a Premier League academy.
“Welcome to Southport football club Solomon Honor,” the club posted. “Standing at 6ft5, 20-year-old goalkeeper Solomon Honor arrives as a young shot-stopper with experience in elite academy football. An England youth goalkeeper, developed through Blackburn Rovers before joining Manchester United’s U21 setup, adding further experience in a high-performance environment. Let’s get to work.”
Honor came through at Blackburn Rovers and spent time at Manchester City before United grabbed him. He’s been sitting behind Will Murdock in Adam Lawrence’s U21 setup without making an appearance for the club. The move to Southport should get him actual game time against grown men in the sixth tier.
The Goalkeeper Logjam at Old Trafford
United have a lot of young keepers right now. Radek Vitek is getting the most interest from potential loan destinations, but he’ll join the first team’s pre-season tour first before any move happens. Then there’s Elyh Harrison, the England U20 international who had a strong loan at Chester but followed it up with a disappointing spell at Shrewsbury last season. He’s been training with Michael Carrick’s squad but didn’t make the trip to Finland for the Wrexham game.
And here’s the funny thing about the Honor name at United. Solomon’s younger brother Zico is also a goalkeeper working his way through the academy. Zico is moving into the U15 age group this season. So there are two Honor brothers between the sticks in United’s system right now.
The family connections don’t stop there. United’s 2026 scholar intake includes Gazik Ibragimov, whose brother Amir is already in the academy setup. And yeah, the sons of Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick are also in that group. Academy football is basically a family business at this point.
For Solomon Honor, this loan is about one thing: getting out of the reserve team bench and proving he can handle senior football. Southport gets a kid who’s been trained at Blackburn, City, and United. Not a bad trade for a National League North side.
Leave a Comment