The young Blues remain top of the league, three points clear of Everton and a plus nine goal difference after the stalemate at Carrington.
Lukas Nmecha had put City in front shortly before half time before Callum Whelan levelled the scores midway through the second half to share the points.
Jason Wilcox made three changes to the side that beat Newcastle at the weekend as Daniel Grimshaw, Rodney Kongolo and Brahim Diaz came in for Kjetil Haug, Marcus Wood and Isaac Buckley.
The young Blues started on top and came close to opening the scoring in the 15th minute. Nmecha created room for himself on the edge of the area before seeing his shot crash off the crossbar and go out for a goal kick.
City continued to pile on the pressure and came close on numerous occasions midway through the first half. Brahim saw his stinging drive palmed away by Oliver Byrne before the United goalkeeper tipped over Aaron Nemane’s driven shot.
As the first half came to a close, Wilcox’s side had two big penalty appeals turned down by the referee. First, Nmecha was dragged back in the area and then Brahim’s goal bound shot looked to be blocked by a hand, but both appeals were waved away and the action continued.
The constant onslaught of attacks paid off shortly before half time as City took a deserved lead in the 42nd minute. Nmecha showed great footwork and control to turn the United defence inside out before burying a left-footed shot in the bottom corner to make it 1-0 to the young Blues.
Kongolo had City’s first chance of the second half eight minutes after the restart as he latched on to a Will Patching corner, only to see his shot cannon away from danger off the legs of Byrne.
The one-way traffic continued to follow in the second half and Nmecha came close to a second of the afternoon with an audacious back heeled effort that cannoned off the post.
The young Blues only had to wait a few minutes before their next chance came about as Brahim drove forward in the 59th minute and saw his goalbound shot cleared off the line by Tyler Reid.
United levelled the scores against the run of play five minutes later through Callum Whelan as he poked home from close range following a Grimshaw save.
City pushed for a winner that would seal the title on their own terms but they couldn’t find a way past United ‘keeper Bryne.
The best chance came in the 69th minute when Nemane squared for Nmecha, whose shot was somehow diverted around the post by Byrne from close range to keep the score at 1-1.
Further notable chances came through Nmecha but Wilcox’s side will now have to wait until Everton’s result on Saturday to find out if they’ve won the Barclays U18 Premier League North Division title.
