Manchester United will play their second game in two days today as they complete their preparations for the new season at Old Trafford.
Erik ten Hag’s first match in the home stadium will be against Spanish side Rayo Vallecano, having lost a hard-fought match to Atletico Madrid in Oslo yesterday.
Cristiano Ronaldo took it upon himself to announce he will play in the game, which Ten Hag confirmed, noting that he was not sure how many minutes his star would be able to complete.
Ten Hag also suggested that players who came on as substitutes yesterday could start today, perhaps meaning that Christian Eriksen, Donny van de Beek and James Garner will be present at kick off.
As Raphael Varane and Aaron Wan-Bissaka did not travel to Oslo, we expect them both to start this one.
Luke Shaw and Jadon Sancho missed the Atleti game through illness and today’s side will depend a lot on whether they have recovered.
If Shaw is back, Lisandro Martinez will make his debut alongside Varane with Shaw at left back. However, if Shaw is still absent we expect Lisandro to cover for him while Eric Bailly steps in at centre back.
Tom Heaton is expected to deputise for David de Gea in goal.
With Garner, Van de Beek and Eriksen comprising the midfield and Ronaldo up front, the wing positions could see a first pre-season start for wonderkid Alejandro Garnacho.
Ten Hag is reported to rate the 18 year old highly, while Facundo Pellistri and Amad failed to impress on the tour.
Pellistri did, though, get minutes in Oslo yesterday so may be preferred.
If Sancho is still ill, we will almost certainly see one or the other of the flying wingers, unless Eriksen is pushed out wide to accommodate the impressive Zidane Iqbal in central midfield.
Hannibal Mejbri and Tahith Chong are other options.
With all that in mind, here are our two predicted XI’s, with and without Shaw and Sancho:
