Manchester United Pre-Season Squad Named as Carrick Era Begins
Manchester United’s summer reset moves from the training pitch to the spotlight this week, with Michael Carrick naming his squad for the first friendly of pre-season against Wrexham in Helsinki – and two headline signings staying at home.
The club’s third-place finish last season, and the return to the Champions League that came with it, turned a drifting campaign into a launchpad. It also turned Carrick’s caretaker stint into a permanent appointment. Now comes the hard part: shaping a squad that can handle a heavier calendar, a new European format and the weight of expectation.
New faces, notable absences
The most eye-catching inclusion for the Wrexham trip is Andrey Santos. The Brazilian midfielder, signed from Chelsea earlier this month, is thrown straight into the pre-season mix and will get an early chance to show why United moved quickly to bring him in.
Not on the plane, though, are Youri Tielemans and Karl Darlow, both of whom completed moves to Old Trafford this summer. Their absence is deliberate rather than dramatic.
Tielemans has been granted extra time off after Belgium’s World Cup campaign, where the Red Devils – the Belgian ones – went out in the quarter-finals to Spain. United triggered the £35 million release clause in his Aston Villa contract, but the club are content to wait a little longer before folding him into Carrick’s on-field plans.
Darlow also sits this one out, leaving the goalkeeping group in Finland to the familiar figure of Tom Heaton and youngsters Radek Vitek and Dermot Mee.
Youth, opportunity and a new spine
Carrick’s first pre-season squad as permanent manager is a snapshot of United’s present and future. Senior names are sprinkled through a group dominated by emerging talent and recent recruits.
At the back, Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw provide experience alongside highly rated youngsters such as Leny Yoro and Patrick Chinazaekpere Dorgu. Ayden Heaven, Harry Amass, Jaydan Kamason and Dan Armer round out a defensive unit that will be asked to blend composure with the inevitable chaos of early pre-season minutes.
Midfield is where intrigue really lies. Mason Mount and Santos headline a group that also includes Jack and Tyler Fletcher, Toby Collyer, Dan Gore, Jacob Devaney and Jim Thwaites. It is a department in transition, and Carrick – a former United midfielder who understands that area of the pitch as well as anyone – will use these weeks to test combinations and calibrate roles before Tielemans joins the mix.
Up front, Joshua Zirkzee leads the attacking line, with Bryan Mbeumo adding proven top-flight quality. Chido Obi, Ethan Wheatley, Shea Lacey and Ethan Williams complete a forward unit that offers pace, movement and a chance for academy prospects to make their case while the club’s World Cup contingent builds fitness.
Manchester United squad vs Wrexham in full
Goalkeepers: Tom Heaton, Radek Vitek, Dermot Mee.
Defenders: Harry Maguire, Patrick Chinazaekpere Dorgu, Leny Yoro, Luke Shaw, Ayden Heaven, Harry Amass, Jaydan Kamason, Dan Armer.
Midfielders: Mason Mount, Andrey Santos, Jack Fletcher, Tyler Fletcher, Toby Collyer, Dan Gore, Jacob Devaney, Jim Thwaites.
Forwards: Joshua Zirkzee, Bryan Mbeumo, Chido Obi, Ethan Wheatley, Shea Lacey, Ethan Williams.
A demanding summer schedule
Wrexham in Helsinki is only the opening act. United’s pre-season tour is built to climb in difficulty and intensity.
From Finland, Carrick’s side head to Norway to face Rosenborg. Then comes a step up in Stockholm against Atletico Madrid, Champions League semi-finalists last season and a stern examination of United’s defensive structure and new midfield blend.
After Scandinavia, the opposition hardens again: Paris Saint-Germain, Leeds United and AC Milan await, offering a mix of styles and tempo that should stress-test United’s evolving game plan.
All of it funnels into a Premier League start that offers little room for hesitation. United begin away to newly promoted Hull City in mid-August, followed by another meeting with fresh top-flight arrivals, Ipswich Town, at Old Trafford. Those fixtures might look gentle on paper. The reality is that promoted sides often arrive with momentum and nothing to lose.
Then the gradient steepens. Everton, Manchester City and Fulham line up before an extended two-week autumn international break. Somewhere in that early stretch, United will also step into the revamped Champions League League Phase for the first time – a new format, more variety in opponents, and far less margin for error.
For Carrick, the friendly against Wrexham is not about the scoreline in Helsinki. It is about rhythm, roles, and first impressions. The names on this squad list – from Santos and Zirkzee to the teenagers chasing a breakthrough – will help decide whether United’s strong finish to last season was a springboard or a ceiling.
