Man United pre-season report: Who has impressed? What have we learned?

Manchester United have five more friendlies this summer before opening their 2026-27 Premier League campaign against newly-promoted Hull City on August 22.

The Red Devils started their preparations for the new season with a 1-0 defeat to Championship outfit Wrexham in Helsinki on Saturday afternoon.

Next up for the 20-time English champions is a game against Rosenborg in Trondheim on Friday, before facing Atletico Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, Leeds United and AC Milan in August, ahead of the first game of their new Premier League campaign.

Here, Sports Mole looks at Man United's pre-season to date, detailing who has impressed and what has been learned from the team's friendlies this summer.

Who has impressed for Man United in pre-season?

In truth, Man United were largely disappointing in their pre-season opener against Wrexham on Saturday, with the Championship outfit recording a 1-0 win.

A strong starting side included Leny Yoro, Harry Maguire, Ayden Heaven, Luke Shaw, Mason Mount, Bryan Mbeumo and Patrick Dorgu, while new signing Andrey Santos made his debut.

Santos was the pick of the Man United players in the first half, with head coach Michael Carrick changing his entire starting side at the half-time interval.

There were plenty of encouraging signs from Santos, who used the ball impressively, while his energetic work left a positive impression.

Heaven was another strong performer in the first period, while Jacob Devaney was the pick of what was a young Man United team in the second half of action.

Devaney, 19, impressed on loan at St Mirren last season, and he will seemingly be given the chance to make an impact during pre-season.

What have we learned from Man United's pre-season?

Only one game in, it is difficult to provide an overall picture, but that will certainly become clearer as the matches go on, especially with a number of first-team stars yet to return.

Man United are short in midfield, but that was obvious at the end of last season, and the signings of Santos and Youri Tielemans were smart ones; another should follow.

The Red Devils had Joshua Zirkzee at the tip of their attack against Wrexham, but it was a disappointing performance from the Netherlands international.

Zirkzee has struggled during his time at Man United, only finding the back of the net on nine occasions in 75 appearances, and the Red Devils should move the 25-year-old on this summer, as he is below the level required.

Harry Amass and Chido Obi are also among the talented youngsters who could potentially head out on loan to secure valuable minutes at senior level.

JJ Gabriel, viewed by many as a generational talent, is expected to be involved in Man United's pre-season preparations ahead of a potential first-team debut next term.