The final friendly of the preseason has storylines that write themselves for Manchester United. They’ll face AC Milan, now led by their most recent former manager, Ruben Amorim, on Saturday. Their will be high drama involved here. One of the players that Amorim didn’t seem to gel with is Marcus Rashford, and who was basically made player non grata (like “persona non grata”).
In Amorim’s United, there was no place for Rashford, and he was sent out on loan twice, first to Aston Villa and then to FC Barcelona.
Manchester United Preseason Tour 2026
Preseason Friendly #6 vs AC Milan
Kickoff: Saturday Aug 15, 2026 3.45pm UK
Venue: Tarczyński Arena, Wroclaw, Poland
Manchester United Preview Material: Team News Predicted Starting XI
Manchester United Team News
Rashford regained his form, while he was away on loan, but United never found a club that was willing to buy him permanently; at least for what they wanted. Under new manager Michael Carrick, Rashford has a place in the team again.
He wasn’t in the squad for the friendly with Leeds United in Dublin yesterday, but is expected to feature on Saturday.
“He’s our player, and he’s come back great,” Carrick said to Irish television outlet ITV after the match.
“I’ve known Marcus a long time, and he gives us something a little bit different, and he’s been in great spirit since he’s been back.
“He’s been back two or three days, trained, and it’s just pretty normal, to be honest. We’re looking forward to the start of the season.”
If he plays this weekend, it will be his first minutes of action in a United shirt since December 2024.
Elsewhere Benjamin Sesko is looking to get his first minutes of the preseason, having recovered from a shin injury, and been primarily focused on his convalescence the past few weeks.
Elsewhere Lisandro Martinez and Kobbie Mainoo, like Rashford, are also looking to get their first preseason minutes after returning from post-World Cup holiday.
“Marcus, Licha and Kobbie only came back a couple of days ago so they’re not quite ready but we can have them for the weekend,” Carrick said, implying that the trio might make a short appearance off the bench.
“We trained hard, the boys who came in, Marcus, Kobbie and Licha have trained really hard and we’ll have a recovery day tomorrow. We’ll all recover tomorrow, train Friday and prepare for the game on Saturday.
“Again, we’ll get the balance right of minutes.”
Apparently the injuries that Lucha and Mainoo were dealing with are now fully healed, perhaps.
And then finally, Mason Mount is a doubt here as he’s also been dealing with an injury.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, Ratings and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.