Manchester United drew 1-1 with Everton in a friendly match played away from the cameras at their Carrington training ground on Wednesday.
Erik ten Hag’s side have stepped up their preparation for the return of competitive football after the World Cup. After returning from their training camp in Jerez, Spain, United faced Frank Lampard’s team at their training ground in freezing temperatures.
The two clubs agreed that no TV cameras would be pitchside and neither has released any details beyond the scoreline. Ten Hag will have been seeking an improved performance from his players following successive defeats in friendlies in Spain.
United were beaten 4-2 by Cadiz and 1-0 by Real Betis while away during the World Cup break. While the players involved against Everton are unknown, Ten Hag will have had an increased stable of players to choose from.
While Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane remain on international duty at the World Cup, after Argentina and France qualified for Sunday’s final, some players have now returned to England. Christian Eriksen and Facundo Pellistri have bolstered the squad after Denmark and Uruguay were eliminated from the World Cup in the group stages.
However, those who were knocked out of the tournament in the quarter-finals are not due back in training until next week, having been given some time off. That includes United’s England contingent – Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw and Marcus Rashford – as well as Brazil’s Casemiro, Fred and Antony and Portugal duo Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot.
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Players who are likely to have been involved against Everton include the likes of Martin Dubravka, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Victor Lindelof, Scott McTominay, Donny van de Beek, Anthony Elanga, Anthony Martial and Alejandro Garnacho. Meanwhile, youngsters Rhys Bennett and Kobbie Mainoo did not play for United’s under-21s on Tuesday night, suggesting they may have stayed with Ten Hag’s group after being included in the trip to Spain.
With first-choice pairing Martinez and Varane unavailable, Lindelof will be in line to start alongside Maguire when United return to competitive action against Burnley in the Carabao Cup on December 21. United then return to Premier League action on December 27 when they host Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford.
Jadon Sancho remains unavailable due to injury. "I have had several talks with Jadon," Ten Hag told reporters this week. "He's on a physical programme and our aim is to get him back as quickly as possible, but I can't give a prognosis of when that will be."
United are also working without Cristiano Ronaldo after his contract was terminated by mutual agreement last month. The 37-year-old is now training with his former club Real Madrid while he tries to find a new club ahead of the January transfer window. So far his only concrete offers have come from Saudi Arabia, but he is holding out for a European giant.
