Andy Kellett, who is now on loan at Manchester United from Bolton Wanderers, was involved in one of the more surprising Deadline Day transfers of 2015 when he joined Bury.
Many were taken aback by the last-minute deal, notably United supporters who were presumably looking for some high-profile additions to increase their chances of winning the Premier League. Rather, they acquired Kellett, a twenty-one-year-old midfielder who had been on loan from Bolton to Plymouth Argyle, a League Two team, for the previous three months.
Kellett was surprised by the change as well. He had committed to playing on loan at Plymouth for the remainder of the season, pending United’s acquisition of his services. In 2022, Kellett said, “The deal at Plymouth had all been agreed upon.” In an interview with Daily Star Sport. I arrived at the training facility on Deadline Day, which was actually rather late.
“The manager told me there was a chance for you to go on loan to Manchester United when I went in. That’s how it happened, then. I was headed to the training ground to sign with Plymouth, but instead I signed with Manchester United.
“I was quite stunned by it at first. But later in the evening, as it was a significant event, I became really emotional. I guess I was in a state of mild shock at first, but I can’t really recall.”
As Kellett soon discovered, going from League Two football to Manchester United is a huge leap. “It was quite surreal,” he remarked of his initial visit to the training area.
“Obviously I’d been to Carrington before having played games for Bolton in the U14s and U16s and that, but I’d never been inside the building.”It had everything, really. A culture shock occurred. I had a great time at Plymouth for the six months prior, but they lacked the amenities that United provided. That’s why it was such a huge, huge shock.”
Despite spending the most of his time with the U23s, Kellett was able to spend a lot of time with first team players like Wayne Rooney, David De Gea, and Angel Di Maria.
