Travis Binnion has confirmed it was Nick Cox's decision for him to take Manchester United's matches in the Papa John's Trophy this season. The Manchester Evening News revealed in August that Binnion was set to be in charge for United's Under-21s' fixtures in the EFL Trophy - known as the Papa John's trophy - this season, despite him holding the position as Under-18s head coach.
That means Binnion has managed the U21s in their EFL Trophy matches against Carlisle, Barrow and Fleetwood this term instead of the official Under-21 head coach Mark Dempsey, who was in attendance as United played Fleetwood on Tuesday.
The club's unique arrangement has seen Dempsey take control of Premier League 2 matches and U18 head coach Binnion take charge of EFL Trophy fixtures, which is something that Cox, who is head of the academy, decided to implement this summer.