Manchester United lost 4-2 against Ruben Amorim’s Milan in their final pre-season friendly, after Bruno Fernandes missed a penalty for the second match in a row and they conceded three goals in the space of 14 minutes in the second half.
Michael Carrick’s team took the lead in Wroclaw, Poland, after only two minutes, when Harry Maguire scored a header from a Fernandes corner. Milan hit back on 37 minutes when an unmarked Samuel Chukwueze slid the ball into the net after being found by their new signing Goncalo Ramos.
Then, shortly before the break, Fernandes had a penalty saved by the Milan goalkeeper Lorenzo Torriani, three days after he missed in a penalty shootout against Leeds United.
In the second half, Patrick Dorgu restored the advantage but Carrick’s side lost control of the game and Milan earned their first win under the former United manager Amorim thanks to goals from Alphadjo Cisse, Ramos and Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
Laurie Whitwell analyses the key talking points from United’s defeat at the Wroclaw Stadium…
Where did it go wrong for United against Milan?
United’s defensive vulnerabilities were exposed by Milan in the second half as Amorim’s team scored three goals in 14 minutes to turn the result on its head.
The ease with which Milan opened up United, each time down the right flank, was alarming, even with this being a game where players were getting fitness back and substitutions were made.
Milan’s equaliser to level the score at 2-2 came when Chukwueze ran unimpeded into the box, with Luke Shaw backing off, then hit a pass through a crowd for Cisse to tap in at the far post. Cisse looked offside but he was allowed too much space regardless.
United defenders appeal for offside as Cisse celebrates (Sergei GAPON / AFP via Getty Images)
Carrick then made six substitutions, with Argentina international Lisandro Martinez making his first appearance of pre-season on the left side of central defence.
That was the area of the pitch from which Milan went ahead, with Chukwueze again allowed time to pick his cross, which Ramos headed in after finding space with some smart movement.
Milan’s final goal had a comical air to it, Loftus-Cheek sprinting away from Martinez and then picking his spot past the United goalkeeper Senne Lammens at the near post.
This was a first match back for Kobbie Mainoo and Rashford too, and that will be a factor in Carrick’s line-up for the Premier League trip to Hull City next weekend. But they will need to defend better than this when the real action starts.
Should United be worried by Fernandes’ missed penalties?
These are only friendlies, but it is notable Fernandes has missed two penalties in successive games for United.
His first, in the shootout against Leeds in Dublin on Wednesday, rolled wide of the right post after wrong-footing goalkeeper Alex Cairns.
It seems highly plausible that the relaxed environs contributed to Fernandes easing up, being more playful than he ordinarily would be, but he looked determined to score when given another opportunity from 12 yards in Wroclaw with the score at 1-1.
Koni De Winter tugged back Youri Tielemans as he broke clear following a defensive mistake by Filippo Terracciano, and United were awarded a penalty, but this time Fernandes went for power and the other direction. He drove the ball to the left side of the goal, but Torriani, Milan’s 21-year-old goalkeeper, read his intentions and dived the right way to push clear.
Fernandes has an excellent record at taking penalties, scoring 67 and missing only eight for club and country during competitive matches – excluding shootouts – a rate of 89 per cent, significantly higher than the 70 per cent average for players.
But he does have moments where his thought process appears to be affected. His last failures to convert came last August and September against Fulham’s Bernd Leno and Brentford’s Caoimhin Kelleher. In the first instance, the referee Chris Kavanagh bumped into him during his preparation and for the second one, he had to wait several minutes due to Brentford’s delaying tactics.
The fact Fernandes changed his method entirely from Dublin to Wroclaw this week suggests some internal debate, at least. But he has scored his last five competitive penalties for Portugal and United, and his previous misses before last season came in 2023.
So he will undoubtedly retain his key role from 12 yards in this team.
Does Rashford wearing No 9 shirt mean he’s here to stay?
The next step to Rashford’s projected return to competitive football for United came with him featuring in a matchday squad for the first time since December 12, 2024.
Amorim dropped him from the next squad at Manchester City back then and Rashford went on loan, first to Aston Villa and then Barcelona. Nearly two years on – with his permanent exit having been expected — here he was again, with Amorim this time in the opposite dugout.
There was added intrigue when his shirt number was announced. He was given the No 9, and that felt significant. It is the number traditionally worn by starting centre-forwards and though he would be set to get minutes primarily on the left wing, it is nevertheless a prized asset for any player.
(Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images)
Rashford staying and getting the No 9 is not confirmed – clubs only need to finalise numbers on the eve of the Premier League – but it feels like the kind of move to really instil in the 28-year-old a sense of a fresh beginning and act as a show of support.
Last summer, United took Rashford’s No 10 from him, to give to Mateus Cunha, before he had even left the club, so handing him the No 9 would strike as proper recompense and a challenge for him to fulfil his comeback.
The No 14 had been touted, the shirt number he wore at Barcelona, with Thierry Henry’s history there adding some glamour, but with Rasmus Hojlund now gone permanently, the No 9 opened up. Benjamin Sesko could take it, but he chose 30 when he signed last summer, so it would be strange to switch already.
Rashford got his return to play in the 61st minute, replacing Dorgu on the left wing. He made darts for the ball over the top several times as soon as he entered the fray, although he was not picked out by the player in possession.
His best moment came when he chased down Chukwueze and won the ball by the corner flag, leaving his opponent on the floor, prompting cheers from crowd, then did a backheel to tee up Shaw on the overlap for a cross.
It was the kind of aggression off the ball that was lacking during his last spell at United, and more of the same will endear him to fans once again.
When do United play next?
Carrick’s team kick-off their Premier League campaign with a trip to newly promoted Hull City on Saturday, August 22 (12.30pm UK, 7.30am ET).
Their first home match of the season at Old Trafford is against Ipswich Town on Sunday, August 30.