Tom Huddlestone scores the winner for Man Utd in the U21s Manchester derby

Former England international Tom Huddlestone netted the winning goal for Manchester United under-21s in their derby win over Manchester City on Monday night.

The 37-year-old, who made 242 appearances in the Premier League for Spurs and Hull, was signed by United to take up a so-called "hybrid role" in their youth team.

Having played at the highest level during his professional career, Huddlestone's presence has no doubt benefitted those in the academy system as he continues to develop as a coach.

And on Monday night, the former Derby County man delivered again, when he bagged a well-taken goal in their 2-1 victory over Manchester City at Leigh Sports Village.

You can see footage of that goal below:

Back in 2022, when United announced Huddlestone's arrival, the club gave an insight into his role.

"The experienced midfielder will create various unique development opportunities for United’s Academy players by coaching from within training sessions and driving daily standards on and off the pitch," they said.

"United’s next generation of Academy graduates will benefit from Huddlestone’s impressive knowledge and capabilities accumulated throughout his career, which has seen him make over 550 professional appearances."

Huddlestone, who is eligible to represent United in Premier League 2 and EFL Trophy competitions, has previously opened up about his surprise move to Old Trafford.

"It was quite random to be fair," he told Soccer AM in 2022. "Paul McShane, who I played with at Hull, did the role last year before retiring.

"He then put my name forward and it was midway through pre-season when I got the phone call (offering me the job)."

Image credit: Getty

Huddlestone added: "The first week (in the job) the first team was away so there was no eyes on me or any pressure like that. It's a big old building so I was saying to Macca (McShane) 'I'm just going to shadow you for the first week'.

"But the five or six coaches I'm working with daily are top notch and really helpful for me, coming from that playing side into a sort of hybrid role.

"When you're on the pitch you're expected to give a bit of info so its similar to that really. The hardest part is mindset-wise, remembering that you're not fighting to stay in the team.

"You want to do as well as you can but you know your main job is to try and develop the players around you rather than try and stay in the team for the next game."