'It was a whirlwind ...I wouldn't change that minute for anything'

James Weir made his Premier League debut on same day as Marcus Rashford but has had toretire after injuries at 28

- Will Unwin

'I have had so many operations on the left side that my body now tilts, and some days I could barely pass the ball," the former Manchester United midfielder James Weir says. The 28-year-old is explaining why he has announced his retirement after a career plagued by injuries.

Weir made his Premier League debut as a last-minute substitute under Louis van Gaal on the same day as Marcus Rashford. The England striker scored a double against Arsenal that afternoon in February 2016 and his story needs no more telling, whereas Weir spent the following years on a somewhat nomadic journey, culminating in a sixth-month spell at Zlate Moravce, who sit bottom of the Slovakian top flight with five points from 24 games. Last month he called it a day.

"I was on the bench for about 10 games," Weir says of his time with the United first team. "It was a bit of a whirlwind - it feels like a lifetime ago. My debut was an out-of-body experience but they were the best moments of my career. Being in the squad and exposed to a club that size was incredible. I wouldn't change that minute for anything." Being a young professional at United is enjoyable, and Weir maybe stayed too long. He has not fallen out of love with the game, and can still be found playing seven or nine-a-side in Cheshire with a group of fellow former professionals and those waiting to find a club, including Ravel Morrison and Danny Simpson.