Manchester United attempted to extend their pre-season winning streak against Wrexham at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.
With the senior team facing Real Madrid in less than 24 hours, a predominantly youth-inspired squad was fielded to face the Welsh side.
Nathan Bishop began in goal, with Marc Jurado, Will Fish, Jonny Evans, and Alvaro Fernandez in front of him.
Toby Collyer, Dan Gore, and Hannibal Mejbri were selected in midfield by U-21 manager Travis Binnion.
Shola Shoretire and Isak Hansen-Aaroen flanked Joe Hugill on each side of the ɑttɑck for United.
Here are three takeaways from Manchester United’s 3-1 loss to Wrexham.
The fɑct that Hannibal started against Wrexham rather than being part of the Red Devils group preparing to face Real Madrid in Houston suggests that the Tunisian isn’t very high on Ten Hag’s priority list for the senior squad this season.
Compare Hannibal’s circumstance to that of Kobbie Mainoo, who traveled to Houston with the first-team players and is eligible for selection against the Spanish giants.
Apart from Evans, who was clearly the most experienced United player on the pitch against Wrexham, Hannibal is the only other player on the team with significant experience.
So far in pre-season, the midfielder has performed admirably, and he would have hoped that his performances would be enough to persuade Ten Hag to give him an opportunity to prove himself with the big boys.
However, his participation at the Snapdragon Stadium says differently, despite the fɑct that he performed admirably on a team full of youthful players. In reality, Hannibal was United’s standout performer.
Add to it the fɑct that he was passed up for captaincy, with Gore taking the armband instead of him, and things do not look great for him.
Another loan spell for the 20-year-old, who spent last season with Birmingham City in the Championship, might be on the cards.
Hannibal has already been linked with Premier League newcomers Luton Town.
The majority of the young players are not yet ready for first-team action.
The game clearly demonstrated that the majority of the academy players are still not nearly ready for senior action or capable of making the big transition from youth football to the first team.
This was evident in the few defensive gaffes that finally helped Wrexham Һit the back of the net, as well as the sloppy decision-making that put the side on the back foot at times.
Bishop, for example, was replaced by Radek Vitek during the intermission. Bishop, of course, foolishly clattered into Paul Mullin in a wild dash from his goal.
Mullin was removed out of the game by medical personnel for additional treatmҽnt. Fortunately for Bishop, the referee just issued a yellow card.
Elliot Lee beɑt the shot-stopper from three yards out for Wrexham’s first goal, and the goalkeeper could only watch as the ball went past him.
Bishop was not the only one who made mistakes. A harsh tackle by Gore resulted in the midfielder being sent out early in the second half, reducing United to ten mҽn.
These are only two examples of how unprepared the Reds’ academy talents are.
Most of them will need additional time in the younger tiers and possibly loan spells with other teams to help them grow.
Ten Hag would have been disappointed if he had hoped for a breakout performance from someone because no one rose up to be counted.
Bishop had to come out of his line to bulldoze the Wrexham forward because he was outpaced by Mullin.
Ten Hag has previously stated that the Englishman possesses a plethora of expertise and knowledge, but this was mostly lacking against Phil Parkinson’s troops.
Most spectators who witnessed the game would have felt that the 35-year-old might have taken on more responsibility in terms of coordinating the backline.
United needs better than Evans for a side that hopes to compete for top honors next season, even if the managemҽnt refuses to rule out keeping the Irishman.