Man Utd XI from last Rosenborg friendly with six axed and two more potential transfers

View 2 Images

Manchester United are due to take on Rosenborg this week, some two years on from their last meeting. Those two years have been incredibly eventful, though, with the Premier League club undergoing a huge upheaval - and not just with the playing staff.

Erik ten Hag was still United's manager when that match in Trondheim took place. He had just led the Red Devils to FA Cup glory but pre-season got off to a tough start when Noah Holm scored the winner in Trondheim.

Ten Hag was gone just months later with Ruben Amorim taking his place. However, the Portuguese coach only lasted 14 months in the hotseat before his January 2026 exit, meaning Michael Carrick is in charge for the latest trip to Norway.

Changes in the dugout have also been accompanied by an overhaul of the playing staff. Six of the 11 players who started the last Rosenborg game have since left or retired, while two more could yet leave Old Trafford before the current window is up.

FOLLOW OUR MAN UTD FB PAGE! Latest United news and more on our dedicated Facebook page

Radek Vitek started in goal that day and is the sole survivor of the back five still on the books at Old Trafford. The Czech started behind centre-back Jonny Evans - now retired and part of Carrick's coaching staff - and three other defenders now playing elsewhere.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Will Fish both left the following month and could end up facing one another in the Championship before too long. Wan-Bissaka's West Ham are newly relegated to the second tier while Fish's Cardiff won promotion last season.

The defence was rounded out by academy graduate Sam Murray , who left for Carlisle in 2025 and is now looking for a new club again. As for Vitek, a promise of first team football could tempt him away.

View 2 Images

"At the moment, I am still here, but we will see. I hope so," he said after featuring against Wrexham in United's first friendly of the summer. "I hope there will be some interest. I think you will know when things are more concrete."

Further forward, Casemiro gave United two more years but left in the summer of 2026. The Brazilian is now at Inter Miami, with a strong end to last season not enough to keep him around.

He played in midfield with Mason Mount and Hannibal Mejbri that day. While Mount is still a United player, impressing against Wrexham, Hannibal is long gone.

The Tunisian international sealed a permanent move to Burnley in August 2024 and remains at Turf Moor to this day. He helped the Clarets win promotion to the Premier League but they dropped straight back down last term.

Pre-season regularly gives clubs the opportunity to blood younger talent, particularly while waiting for international players to return from major tournaments. Ethan Williams and Ethan Wheatley are both still at United, having started that Rosenborg game, as are some of the youngsters who came off the bench in Trondheim.

Completing the front three was Marcus Rashford , who had surprisingly been overlooked by Gareth Southgate for England's Euro 2024 squad. The forward spent the 2025/26 season on loan at Barcelona but his future is up in the air again after the Catalan club opted against triggering a buy option, and manager Carrick will have a decision to make on the academy graduate.