Manchester United face Rosenborg in Norway at 5pm BST on Friday, July 24, at Lerkendal Stadion. The friendly is set up more around selection than the scoreline, with Michael Carrick expected to rotate again while injuries and new arrivals shape the side.
Manchester United go in with three wins and a draw in their last five league matches, and they have scored 11 goals across those games. Rosenborg arrive with mixed momentum from their last five competitive matches, so this is still a useful check on United’s rhythm without requiring Carrick to treat it like a full-strength test.
Injuries and rotation shape the squad
Several absences will affect the picture. Benjamin Sesko is still shaking off a shin injury, Matthijs De Ligt is recovering after back surgery and Karl Darlow is also recovering from a minor procedure. Carrick used two unique teams in the first and second halves against Wrexham, and he is expected to keep shuffling here rather than settle on one fixed XI.
The selection picture also has a few useful clues. Carrick is expected to start Tom Heaton in goal and could keep Joshua Zirkzee, Bryan Mbeumo, Harry Amass and Andrey Santos in the side for more minutes. Zirkzee has logged 112 minutes across his last five league appearances, while Mason Mount has played 211 in his last five, which gives Carrick different options for how aggressively to rotate the attacking and midfield groups.
New faces and the next selection call
Tynan Thompson completed a transfer from Tottenham earlier this week, so there is fresh curiosity around how quickly he fits into the mix. Radek Vitek asked to leave the club in an interview given following the Wrexham match, which adds another layer to the goalkeeping picture around a game that looks designed to spread minutes rather than settle arguments.
The score will matter less than who gets through the night cleanly. Carrick has injuries to manage, players to reintegrate and one new signing to bed in, and the Rosenborg trip should tell United more about those choices than about the result itself.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
