Manchester City will wait on Pep Guardiola's final plans for Sheffield United before confirming their squad for the FA Youth Cup semi-final.
The Under-18s take on Blackburn on Friday at St. George's Park as the competition that was halted as a result of the pandemic is played to a conclusion over four days.
Carlos Vicens will take charge of the team, having taken over this season from Gareth Taylor who has become the head coach of the women's team.
A number of talented players still eligible for the competition have been training with Guardiola, including Cole Palmer, Tommy Doyle, Liam Delap and Taylor Harwood-Bellis.
There is hope that at least some of those could feature on Friday in a tournament that the City academy prioritises. However, with the primary purpose of the academy to promote players to the first team the situation is seen as a "win-win".
The four players above returned to Manchester on Wednesday from Marseille, where they were on the bench for the Champions League win; Palmer came on for the final ten minutes of the game for his debut in the competition, while Delap is the only fit striker at the club for the first-team game on Saturday lunchtime.
Vicens will not have any concerns about welcoming players back to the Under-18s given their quality and knowledge of the academy. In their absence though, the Under-18s have made an unbeaten start to the season while the Under-23s featuring prospects such as James McAtee have won their last three games under new coach Enzo Maresca.
