Marc Bridge-Wilkinson has a simple but effective message for his new-look U18s squad this season.

After guiding his side to the FA Youth Cup final in 2020-21 and netting 93 goals in all competitions, the young Reds enjoyed a fruitful campaign and progress was made.

As Bridge-Wilkinson’s charges prepare to welcome Stoke City to the Academy on Saturday for their U18s Premier League North opener, a number of new faces will be on show for the home side.

Ahead of the 11am BST kick-off, read on as Bridge-Wilkinson looks ahead to the new campaign.

On his message to his players ahead of 2021-22…

It’s really simple really: let’s not waste a moment. Let’s not waste a moment of trying to get better, on and off the pitch. Let’s make sure we do things in the manner that befits this great football club that we are a part of and let’s make sure that we do things well. Let’s make sure we improve and we try to succeed in everything that we do.

On how pre-season preparations have been for the squad…

Pre-season has been really good. It has been a bit different and we’ve been working really closely with the U23s squad, so it has been really pleasing. The boys have been working really hard and they are ready to go.

On seeing a number of youngsters from the FA Youth Cup squad being part of the first-team training camp…

From what I can gather they have had a great time and they really enjoyed themselves. I’m hopeful they all performed to the level I know they are capable of, so it’s been really pleasing to watch from the outside.

On his hopes for the new campaign…

The first thing to mention is this is a different group this season. We can’t judge this group on what last season’s group achieved. We are really hopeful and are positive that they will show some great performances individually and collectively, and that we can make a real success of the season. There will be some new boys that people won’t have seen yet or seen a little bit of last season. It’s an exciting time for everybody and we are all looking forward to the season kicking off on Saturday.

On the test of Stoke City for the season opener…

Strangely enough the first two games this season are the same as the first two last season, with Stoke City home and Manchester United away. We are looking forward to it. We know it’s going to be tough against Stoke but we will face that challenge head on and do our best.