MANCHESTER UNITED suffered a 1-0 defeat in their opening preseason match against Wrexham in the Helsinki Olympic Stadium.
Michael Carrick was not too fussed about the result, with preseason giving players the chance to find their rhythm and dust off the rust.
Leny Yoro has enjoyed a restful summer Credit: Getty
Michael Carrick said there were plenty of positive performances to take home Credit: AFP
JattvibeSport brings you three things we learnt from United’s second preseason defeat to Wrexham in recent years.
More to come from Andrey Santos
Andrey Santos enjoyed a solid 45 minutes on his United debut against Wrexham just days after completing a £48m transfer from Chelsea.
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While Santos is quietly effective at his best, he needs the right support to amplify his impact and truly stand out.
Carrick and his staff have landed an exciting, high-potential project—a raw talent ready to be molded into something special.
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Yet, there remains one glaring area the United midfield lack. Legs. They will have to go back into the market for an athletic defensive-stalwart type.
Manu Kone, United academy graduate James Garner and Alex Scott running stats rank the best. While there is always the chance that Atalanta’s Ederson is revisited at a lower price.
There’s still more to come from Andrey Santos, who enjoyed a solid 45 minutes on his United debut Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
United need another striker
If this friendly proved anything, it’s that United’s depth upfront remains paper-thin.
The recruitment team urgently needs to bring in another striker over the coming weeks to provide reliable support and coverage for Benjamin Sesko this season.
Sesko’s injury opened the door for Joshua Zirkzee to spearhead the attack in the first half.
Those hoping to see young academy striker Chido Obi in action were left disappointed, though, as he failed to feature in the heavily rotated second half XI.
Youngster Ethan Williams caused Wrexham more problems than Zirkzee in the second half, albeit 20 out of 21 players changed.
United also want another left winger to enhance their depth but Marcus Rashford would ideally need to move on.
Benjamin Sesko needs support next season Credit: Getty
New positions for Mason Mount and Leny Yoro
The former Chelsea midfielder played as a No8 alongside Santos, like he did during the final two games of last season.
With the Red Devils struggling to sign that elusive third midfielder, Mount might need to get used to playing in this new position in the upcoming season.
Another fascinating positional switch involved Leny Yoro, who did a job at right-back.
Yoro tried to get forward as much as possible and was stronger in the box than he was at times last season.
His physical impact was especially clear in the 36th minute when his sheer presence at a corner completely rattled Wrexham’s Smith, nearly forcing a comical own-goal.
