Carlisle United have completed a move to sign Joe Riley as confirmed by the club website.
The 23-year-old defender came through the Manchester United youth system. He never played for them in the Premier League but he did make the odd appearance for them in cup competitions. His biggest game was when he made a start for Manchester United against FC Midjtylland in the Europa League. During his time at Manchester United, he was loaned out to Sheffield United. Most recently he was Bradford City but his release was unsurprising after he only made six appearances for them over two years there.
But Riley, who can play on the right and the left of defence, will be staying in the EFL after signing a one-year contract with Carlisle. He also has the option of another year. This could be a great signing for the Cumbrians as they now have a young full-back with plenty of potential on the books.
Following the completion of the move, Carlisle head coach Chris Beech said:
“Joe was at Manchester United from the age of eight. He was given his debut by Louis Van Gaal and he was also one of the younger players to be named by Jose Mourhino on the bench as he moved up to the first team group.
“He went out on loan to Sheffield United with Chris Wilder, but after a couple of games he was injured in a freak training ground accident. He later joined Bradford in League One, but it didn’t really work for him.
“They got relegated to League Two and he suffered another freak injury stretching for a ball in pre-season, and he missed most of his available game time.”
