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A youthful and barebones senior Manchester United squad succumbed to a 0-1 defeat to Rosenborg in Norway to kick off their pre-season on a negative note.
Only five players- Mason Mount, Marcus Rashford, Casemiro, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, and Jonny Evans are even a part of the first team, let alone regular starters which arguably nobody is apart from Rashford.
Therefore, a disjointed performance was understandable, especially as the Norwegian side are match fit, being in the middle of their league season.
As the pre-season progresses, more players will return from their extended holidays due to their international commitments. The picture is already looking a lot more rosy for their next game- vs Rangers on July 20.
Here are five players on track to return to the team for the game in Scotland-
Scott McTominay
The club have confirmed that McTominay will return to the team on July 17 so having been in training for two days, he is likely to play some part vs Scotland.
His national side got eliminated from the Euros in the group stages so his extended holiday ends earlier than others whose sides went into the latter stages.
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He will be eager to impress in his home country and with midfield reinforcements targeted in the window, will be driven to prove himself all over again.
Harry Maguire
Talking about proving himself again, Maguire finds himself in the same boat as McTominay, as the pair was nearly sold to West Ham United last season.
Both made sensational comebacks in the season and emphasised their importance to the team. Maguire has gone the extra mile to shake off the injury which prevented him from going to the Euros.
He looks like he could return for this game after undergoing intense fitness sessions with the staff at Carrington.
45 minutes will be on the agenda as the Englishman eases himself back into action.
Jadon Sancho
Probably the most awaited return which makes the game vs Rangers a must-watch. United’s decision to reunite with Sancho has split the fans but ultimately, if no club was willing to offer what United wanted, it made no sense to take a huge loss.
Both parties look like they have acted with professionalism to draw a line under the sand and move on. The process of reintegrating Sancho into the squad should begin at Rangers after he was on an individual fitness regime.
How Ten Hag uses Sancho might also point toward the club’s transfer plans as he was being fielded as a False 9 in pre-season last year.
Andre Onana
Onana was an unexpected exclusion from the squad vs Rosenborg as he joined the individual fitness group along with Sancho.
In his absence, Radek Vitek put forward a sensational display of goalkeeping to keep the damage in Norway to a minimum.
Still, as United’s undisputed first-choice, expect him to get 45 minutes against Rangers with Vitek getting the other 45. The impact of new goalkeeping coach Jelle ten Rouwelaar and how, if in any way, Onana’s playing style changes will be interesting to watch.
Antony
This last place was a toss-up between Antony and Amad, with both missing the game against Rosenborg to work on their fitness.
There might well be a scenario where both return and get 45 minutes each as the competition on the right wing figures to be between these two this season. Considering Antony seems to be the preferred choice generally and everyone starting with a clean slate he is the likelier choice.
That will spell the end of the youngster experiment on the wings, as Ethan Williams and Ethan Ennis occupied that flank in Norway. With Sancho also returning, it will leave Ten Hag with no space to accommodate youth prospects out wide.
