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Ryan Tunnicliffe’s dad wins £10,000 bet on son’s Manchester Utd debut

Ryan Tunnicliffe earnin' his dad some paper (Getty)
Ryan Tunnicliffe earnin' his dad some paper (Getty)

Things don't always turn out well for fathers of Manchester United players who bet on football, but Ryan Tunnicliffe's dad is now a wealthier man for having faith in his son's abilities.

Midfielder Tunnicliffe has been on the books at Manchester United since he was scouted as a 9-year-old. Seeing his son's potential at that young age, Tunnicliffe Sr. did what any upstanding father would do and rushed to his local bookmakers to place a wager. Reports The Guardian:

When the fledgling midfielder, now 19, was nine his father had placed the wager that his son would one day play for United, taking the odds of 100-1 with a £100 bet.

When Tunnicliffe made his debut appearance for the first team as a 76th-minute substitute for Marnick Vermijl in Wednesday's League Cup win over Newcastle, the 10-year-old bet earned pops a tidy £10,000 ($16,234) payout.

While 10 large is a fantastic return on investment, the Daily Mail notes that the Tunnicliffe family could be in line for another £35,000 ($56,820) in the near future:

There could be worse to come for bookmakers William Hill, who revealed they also took another bet from Tunnicliffe's dad of £100 at odds of 350/1 that the young midfielder will one day play for England at some stage in his career.

If Ryan Tunnicliffe fails to make the England team, conspiracy theorists will relish the fact that William Hill is now the official bookmaker of the Three Lions. Meanwhile, others may relish the fact that a football association that strives to prevent match fixing has an official bookmaker.

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