Erik ten Hag lays into Man Utd stars as first pre-season game ends in defeat

Manchester United's pre-season tour got off to a rocky start as they conceded in the dying moments of their opening game . Rosenborg's Noah Holm, coming on as a substitute, scored with virtually the last kick of the game, handing Erik ten Hag's side a 1-0 defeat in Trondheim.

New United CEO Omar Berrada , sporting director Dan Ashworth and technical director Jason Wilcox were all present, observing the new coaching duo of Ruud van Nistelrooy and Rene Hake guiding Ten Hag's players. However, the much-anticipated new era at United began with a loss, despite goalkeeper Radek Vitek's heroic efforts, making a series of crucial saves until he was finally beaten late on.

And Erik ten Hag laid into the Manchester United stars involved in the game in his post-match interview, insisting their performance was simply not up to the standards demanded at the club. He said: "The result is not secondary.

Our performance as a team is by far not good enough. This is not the standard of top football. We are Man Utd, we should perform better".

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Ten Hag fielded a team that mixed experience with youth, his options limited due to player absences following Euro 2024, injuries, and individual training programmes back in Manchester. A core of senior players Jonny Evans, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Mason Mount, Casemiro and Marcus Rashford was supplemented by young talents given the chance to impress in the absence of other established stars.

Vitek was chosen as the starting goalkeeper, with Andre Onana and Altay Bayindir not included in the squad, Sam Murray was selected at left-back, Will Fish partnered Evans in central defence, with Ethan Williams on the right of United's attack.

In the absence of Rasmus Hojlund and new signing Joshua Zirkzee, 18-year-old striker Ethan Wheatley led United's attack, but had little in the way of service. He was marked tightly in his 45-minute outing, but tested Rosenborg keeper Sander Tangvik with a shot just before the break, after being played through by Mount.

With Rosenborg midway through their season in the Eliteserien, their superior sharpness and match fitness showed, as they dominated possession and created more goalscoring opportunities. Rashford's name was cheered the loudest by the 21,013 capacity crowd at the Lerkendal Stadium, most of whom were supporting United.

But Rashford, deployed on the left of United's attack, endured a quiet 45 minutes. Rosenborg did not hold back, with some robust challenges, notably midway through the first half, when Tomas Nemick was booked for an ugly lunge on Casemiro, who needed treatment following the poor tackle.

Mariuis Broholm struck a post with a goalbound effort in the 27th minute and was booked moments later for pulling back Rashford as the United forward sped away from him. Broholm then hit the bar with a close-range effort and was denied by Vitek moments later, as United continued to come under pressure from the hosts.

As expected, Ten Hag restricted his outfield starting line-up to 45 minutes, making 10 changes at the break, in keeping with the established pre-season procedure of not overloading players in terms of their workload.

Manchester United's young guns were given a chance to shine in their latest pre-season outing, with 20-year-old Czech Under-20 international Vitek, fresh from his stint at Accrington Stanley, pulling off a string of impressive saves throughout the game.

Midfielder Toby Collyer, also 20 and fresh off signing a new deal with the Reds, donned the captain's armband after the break and put on a performance that showcased exactly why Erik ten Hag rates him so highly.

Vitek was called into action again in the 63rd minute, making a crucial save to deny Rosenborg's Tobias Borkeeiet by tipping the ball onto the bar. Not to be outdone, Tangvik mirrored his counterpart's heroics shortly after, thwarting a powerful effort from United's own Ethan Ennis.

Erik ten Hag, speaking before the match, highlighted the importance of the youth stepping up, referencing Alejandro Garnacho's Copa America final and Kobbie Mainoo's Euros final appearances as inspiration: "In my team talk, I gave them [the young players] the Copa America final involving Alejandro Garnacho, and the Euros final involving Kobbie Mainoo."

He continued, emphasizing the pathway for youngsters at United: "Last season in the same game [United against Leeds in Oslo] Kobbie started that match, so for them it's possible. But they have to earn the right to play for the first-team of Manchester United. You don't get it, you have to deserve it."

Ten Hag also shared his anticipation for the upcoming season: "It's always exciting coming into a new season. I want to see them acting like Manchester United - hard to beat and [playing with] intensity."