Rashford Returns, But Amorim’s Milan Expose Every Carrick Problem in 4-2 Defeat

Marcus Rashford made his first Manchester United appearance since December 2024 — and it still ended up being a night to forget. United led twice in Wroclaw before AC Milan, managed by Ruben Amorim, ran out 4-2 winners in the final pre-season fixture. With the Premier League opener at promoted Hull City just a week away, Michael Carrick has one glaring problem and very little time to fix it.

The positives: Rashford, Mainoo and Martinez all back on the pitch

Marcus Rashford made his first Manchester United appearance since December 2024. After more than 18 months away from the first team, the England forward is back in the picture — the single most significant development of the entire pre-season programme.

Kobbie Mainoo and Lisandro Martinez also made their first appearances of pre-season. Captain Bruno Fernandes and Youri Tielemans both went the full 90 minutes. Crucially, there were no fresh injury concerns for Carrick coming out of the match, which for a squad that has been hammered by fitness problems in recent seasons counts as a genuine win.

The 4-2 scoreline tells the real story

Manchester United took the lead twice and still lost 4-2. That is the whole issue in one line. Scoring twice against a Milan side of this quality is not the problem. Shipping four goals in the last rehearsal before a Premier League season absolutely is.

This was not a team undone by a lack of quality going forward. It was a team that could not hold a lead, could not slow the game down when Milan lifted the intensity, and could not close out the final half hour. Those are structural problems, not effort problems, and they do not disappear in seven days of training.

Hull City away: the Premier League’s classic opening-day trap

United begin their Premier League campaign on Saturday away at promoted Hull City. On paper it is a favourable start. In practice, an away trip to a newly promoted side on opening weekend is one of the most reliably awkward fixtures in English football — a packed ground, a team with nothing to lose, and an opponent under pressure to win comfortably.

Carrick at least goes into it with bodies available. Rashford, Mainoo and Martinez have minutes in the legs, Fernandes and Tielemans have a full 90 behind them, and the medical room has not got any worse. The question is whether a defence that just conceded four can survive a hostile opening day.

What Rashford’s return actually changes for Carrick

Rashford’s return gives Carrick something he has been short of: a forward option with genuine Premier League pedigree who can attack space behind a defence. Promoted sides often sit deep, but they also get stretched in transition — and that is where Rashford has historically done his best work.

The caveat is obvious. Twenty months without a United appearance means match sharpness will take time. Expecting him to start and lead the line at full intensity from day one would be unrealistic. A role from the bench, growing into the season, is the sensible path.

There is also a squad-dynamics argument. A fit, involved Rashford raises the competitive bar for every other attacking option at the club. That pressure alone has value in August.

The verdict before the season starts

Three takeaways. Rashford is back on the pitch after a long absence. The injury list did not grow. And the defence remains the number one problem at Old Trafford, exactly as it was last season.

Pre-season results do not go on the table. But a 4-2 collapse after leading twice is the kind of performance that sets the tone in a dressing room — and Carrick has one week to make sure it does not carry into Hull.

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