Manchester United trained ahead of their friendly against AC Milan in Poland

Manchester United take on AC Milan in their final pre-season fixture before the Premier League campaign gets up and running. Michael Carrick’s side have landed in Wroclaw, Poland, where they’ll take on the Serie A giants tomorrow afternoon.

Marcus Rashford has been named in the United squad for that friendly against AC Milan, and could feature for the first time in 18 months. The England international has been the subject of speculation about his future at Old Trafford, but looks set to be a United player next season.

Tomorrow’s game will be the last time Carrick and his coaching staff can experiment before they take on Hull City at the MKM Stadium next weekend.

Here are some interesting things the Manchester Evening News spotted from training this week:

Marcus Rashford playing with a smile on his face

So much has been made of Rashford’s future at Manchester United, will he, or won’t he stay? After Carrick’s comments last week, it appears all signs are pointing towards the England international being reintegrated into the first team set-up.

That may not be such a bad thing if his performances last season are anything to go by. Rashford spent last season on loan at Barcelona, netting 14 goals and notching 14 assists in 47 outings as the Catalan giants clinched La Liga.

And yet the Spanish club chose not to exercise their £26million option to buy in their loan agreement with United, instead snapping up Rashford’s England teammate Anthony Gordon in a £69million move.

Rashford returned to training earlier this week and was photographed with a huge smile on his face as he trainned alongside his teammates for the first time in 18 months. At his best, Rashford is one of the best forwards in the Premier League and all eyes are on Carrick to see if he can get the United graduate back to his pomp.

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Speaking earlier this week, Carrick said: “He’s our player, he came back Sunday night, he arrived with Kobbie [Mainoo], and Lisandro [Martinez] came the day after, and he’s part of the group like anybody else. He came in, he’s trained really well.

“I’ve known him a long time, like I’ve known some of the others a long time, so I don’t treat him any different to anybody else, but it’s been good to have him around the group again this week. So I’m really positive with that.”

“We’re really calm, we just treat it like anybody else coming into the group and there’s obviously this slight twist that he knows the club as well as anybody and that’s a real positive,” he said.

“He’s been here all his career, all his life before the last 18 months or so, to understand what it means. That side of things is natural, that’s a given. I know he’s got history, but I’ve got history with a number of the players as well, so that doesn’t make that a unique situation at all and treat him as exactly like any other player.

“Bringing him into the group and carrying on as normal brings the good things that we haven’t got, and we want to get that balance with every individual player, and Marcus has come back and he’s in good form, and it’s been good to have him around this week.”

United handed major injury boosts

Pre-season can be a disjointed couple of weeks with players away on international duty and returning to training at different stages of preparations.

Add injuries into the mix and Carrick has had to utilise the full depth at his disposal.

But the United boss was given a major boost this week with Benjamin Sesko and Matthijs De Ligt back in training having missed a large chunk of pre-season with injury.

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Sesko has been struggling with a shin injury that kept him out of the latter end of the season, having been in fine form under Carrick prior to that blow, with seven goals in 13 games.

United have maintained the striker will be fit for the season opener against Hull City and seeing him back in training is a major boost.

The same can be said for De Ligt, having had surgery on a back injury. Speaking after the operation in May, he said: “Since November I have done everything, pushing myself in every session and exploring every option, to get back to doing what I love, playing football.

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“I am grateful to everyone who has supported me throughout a difficult period in my career. I remain as determined as ever to represent Manchester United and play in front of our incredible supporters as soon as possible.”

De Ligt and Sesko have not travelled to Poland for tomorrow’s game and have instead returned to Carrington to continue their rehabilitation.

Youngsters with opportunity to impress

Michael Carrick has given several youngsters opportunities to force their way into his plans this season, with Harry Amass, Ayden Heaven and Tyler Fletcher starting the pre-season draw with Leeds United.

Daniel Armer, Toby Collyer, Tynan Thompson and Jack Fletcher were all second half substitutes and given minutes from the bench.

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Fred Heath, Solomon Honour, Shea Lacey and JJ Gabriel were named as unused substitutes on the bench and the latter two youngsters have caused quite the stir.

The duo have impressed in pre-season and continue to train with Carrick’s squad ahead of the upcoming Premier League campaign.

At just 15-years-old, Gabriel is the crown jewel in United’s academy and could play in the Premier League this season.

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United aren’t in a rush to throw Gabriel into the deep end, but his talent may be too difficult to ignore.

Mikel Arteta has said that supporters “don’t have to worry about” his future at Arsenal as he wants to extend his contract and the time left on his deal is “not an issue”.

The Gunners boss is into the final 12 months of his agreement that he signed in 2024 but says he is relaxed about formal talks taking place regarding a renewal.

Arteta has been in charge of Arsenal since 2019 and led the club to their first Premier League title in 22 years last season.

Arsenal face Manchester City in the Community Shield on Sunday (15:00 BST) and Arteta was asked in his news conference about the concern some supporters may have given he is yet to agreed a new deal before the 2026-27 campaign kicks off.

“No, they don’t have to worry about any of that because I want to be here, I’m extremely happy,” Arteta said.

“I feel very grateful to work with the people that I work with and whenever we have the possibility we will resolve that and that’s it.”

The Gunners are attempting to build on their success of last season and strengthen their squad in the transfer window.

They were unsuccessful in their pursuit of Real Madrid winger Vinicius Jr but have signed midfielder Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle, Greece international winger Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge and made Piero Hincapie’s loan move from Bayern Leverkusen into a permanent transfer for a combined £143.5m.

Goalkeeper Illan Meslier has also arrived on a free transfer from Leeds United while, from last season’s squad, Leandro Trossard, Jakub Kiwior and Christian Norgaard have been moved on.

The Gunners remain interested in Aston Villa‘s Ezri Konsa or Jarell Quansah of Bayer Leverkusen as a further defensive reinforcement in the market following injuries to William Saliba and Jurrien Timber.

With the transfer window open until 1 September, the feeling at the club is that finalising a contract can come at a quieter period in the season.

“There’s always another priority I think and that’s the way we’ve been treating it. Arteta added.

“I think because everybody feels comfortable that the time on the contract is not going to be an issue.

“I think because my will certainly is to be here and I’m very happy here.

“And my feeling from the club is is the same one so I think that’s why everybody doing it things in a really organic way.”

Arsenal also reached the Champions League final last season where they were beaten by Paris St-Germain and Arteta has repeatedly spoken of his ambition since that loss to take the Gunners to next level.

“I’m not going to talk about any individuals, obviously what I can tell you is the ambition of the club.” Arteta said.

“It’s big that we want to improve the squad, we want to evolve the squad in order to achieve that.

“We have obviously detected some areas that they can be strengthened and that’s what we are trying to do.”

Ahead of the Minnesota Vikings preseason opener against the New York Giants this Saturday, I am ready to drop my Vikings predictions for the 2026 season.

Adam New’s Vikings Predictions for the 2026 Season

My predictions last year didn’t fare so well, as they were all about the Vikings’ offense, and it wasn’t a good year for that side of the ball in Minnesota. With that in mind I’ve made sure to get the defense involved this time around. Here are my Vikings predictions for 2026.

Kyler Murray Makes the Pro Bowl

The first of my Vikings predictions for 2026 involves the most important position on the team. Stay healthy and a good quarterback can get himself to the Pro Bowl in Minnesota. Kirk Cousins and Sam Darnold are proof of that, and it can be the same for Kyler Murray – who already has a couple of Pro Bowl appearances to his name from earlier in his career. Minnesota should have a strong offensive line and certainly an abundance of offensive weapons, with Justin Jefferson leading the charge. 

Kevin O’Connell likes to lean on his passing game as much as possible, so there will be ample opportunity for Murray. If Murray can get well over 3500 passing yards and 20+ touchdowns he can be in Pro Bowl contention. He has achieved that in every season where he has played at least 14 games. If he stays healthy he should be doing it in Minnesota.

Dallas Turner has 10+ Sacks

Dallas Turner getting 10+ sacks shouldn’t be a huge leap. He managed eight last season and he wasn’t a regular starter to begin the season. Now he is the leader of the Vikings’ pass rush but that does come with extra attention as opposing teams will be focused on stopping him. I’m confident that Turner has the talent and has shown the development to take on his increased role in 2026 and be a success. Reaching double figures in sacks should be well within his reach.

Charles Demmings is the Breakout Rookie

He might only be a fifth-round pick but Charles Demmings is showing up in training camp. He’s already being put up against the Vikings 1s and proving that he has the ability to compete.

Demmings is a physical man-to-man cornerback who loves to talk when he wins a rep, something this group has desperately missed in recent years. The man who goes by Chuck doesn’t lack confidence as shown when he swatted a pass away from Jefferson in camp and got chirpy. 

The next step for Demmings is to take the good work from training camp into the upcoming preseason games as he pushes for playing time when the regular season begins. The secondary is an area that rotation can be used giving him potential to get on the field. If he does he comes across as the kind of character who will make the most of his opportunities.

One and Done Again in the Playoffs

It’s all been positive so far with my Vikings predictions but this one is a mixed bag. I believe the Vikings will make it back to the playoffs this season, which is a positive after a disappointing 2025 season. However, I’m not seeing enough to convince me that O’Connell can lead the team to a first playoff win of his tenure as head coach.

If Minnesota makes the playoffs then maybe they get a favorable draw, but against the top teams I feel the team still has too many weaknesses or needs serious development – particularly in the trenches on both sides of the ball, the secondary, and the rushing attack.

Proud UK Viking. Family Man. Enjoy writing about my team. Away from football an advocate for autism acceptance.

Tim Bradley has named one man who could present Terence Crawford with an appealing opportunity to come out of retirement.

The sure-fire Hall of Famer called time on his career in December, just a few months after dethroning Canelo Alvarez for the undisputed super-middleweight crown.

In doing so, Crawford became a three-division undisputed champion and retired as one of the modern greats, having also claimed world titles in two other weight classes.

But while the unbeaten American seems content with his non-fighting lifestyle, there has been repeated talk of him returning to action for a clash with Jaron Ennis.

‘Boots’ became a two-division unified champion in June, dethroning Xander Zayas with a vicious seventh-round finish for the WBA and WBO world super-welterweight titles.

As a result, many feel that he is now the top dog at 154lbs, despite having not yet tested himself against fellow champions Sebastian Fundora and Josh Kelly.

Those unification matches do seem to be on his radar, though, and while the Crawford fight appears unlikely, Ennis has nonetheless expressed his interest in facing ‘Bud’ on multiple occasions.

In order for it to make sense for Crawford, however, Hall of Famer Bradley has said on his YouTube channel that Ennis would need to become the undisputed middleweight king.

“Boots ain’t got [anything] that Crawford needs, nothing at all. Well, Boots … if you go up to 160[lbs] and you wipe out the whole division and you win all the straps there, maybe that might be enticing.”

Ennis first attempted to challenge Crawford in 2023, when he was the IBF mandatory challenger at 147lbs and Bud had just stopped Errol Spence Jr in nine rounds.

Keely Hodgkinson came up just short of a coveted European 800 metres title hat-trick after Swiss favourite Audrey Werro won their hotly-anticipated showdown in Birmingham as the British Olympic champion settled for silver.

Hodgkinson started quicker, but was overtaken by Werro on the back straight was never overtaken after the first 200m.

Double-defending champion Hodgkinson was just behind as they rounded the final bend, but Werro would not be caught and crossed the finish in a championship record one minute, 54.81 seconds.

Hodgkinson claimed silver in 1:55.01 and the Netherlands’ Femke-Broeders Bol took bronze in a national record 1:55.54.

“A bit of mixed emotions,” Hodgkinson told the BBC. I think with that level of competition, any medal is a really good achievement and another one to add to my collection so I can never be disappointed with that. But I’m defending champion so I wanted to do that.

“I knew it was going to come down to the wire but I really thought I was going to win today. But it wasn’t meant to be. I didn’t do anything wrong, it was just one of those things.

“I’ve said all year it’s really motivating to be in such a competitive event. I love it, I think it brings out the best in me. Championship racing that’s what it’s all about, you don’t know how it’s going to go and some people can have a good day or a bad day. I think I had a pretty good day today but it just didn’t go how I wanted it to.”

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Cristiano Ronaldo’s mother and sisters were reportedly absent from his secret wedding, amid claims they had no warning.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s decision to keep his wedding to Georgina Rodríguez almost entirely private has raised another question after a Portuguese television presenter claimed that even members of his immediate family may have received virtually no notice that the ceremony was taking place.The claim comes after the couple’s marriage certificate revealed that Ronaldo’s mother, Dolores Aveiro, and his siblings Hugo, Elma and Katia were not present when he and Rodríguez married at their Cascais home on August 11. Only four witnesses and the couple’s five children attended the intimate civil ceremony.

‘30 seconds beforehand’

The extraordinary claim was made by Portuguese presenter Cristina Ferreira on the TVI programme Dois às 10 while discussing the absence of Ronaldo’s family from the ceremony, according to The Sun.“It will cause a lot of problems because the family wasn’t present,” Ferreira said. She then suggested that they may not even have known the wedding was happening until moments before it began.“And they shouldn’t even have known,” she said. “Or if they did know, it was 30 seconds beforehand.”Ferreira’s comments are a claim rather than confirmation from Ronaldo or his family, and her co-host Cláudio Ramos urged caution about drawing conclusions from what was visible publicly.“I really hope that what we said here, which had to do with the impressions we get from what exists on social media, did not actually cause sadness in the family, that things were not as they apparently seem,” Ramos said.

Ronaldo’s mother was not at the ceremony

The claim comes after Jornal de Notícias obtained and published the couple’s marriage certificate, providing the first detailed account of who was present.The document names Miguel Paixão, Ronaldo’s longtime friend, Ivana Rodríguez, Georgina’s sister, and Spanish jeweller José Rodríguez Sangil and his wife Mónica González Martínez as the four witnesses.Ronaldo’s mother and three siblings were not among them.That absence is particularly notable because Dolores publicly appeared to support the marriage after Ronaldo and Rodríguez announced it. She responded to her son’s Instagram post showing their wedding rings with a heart emoji.There is therefore no public indication from Dolores herself that she objected to the marriage, while the presenter’s comments have introduced a different possibility: that the ceremony was kept so tightly controlled that even Ronaldo’s family may have been informed only at the last moment.

The wedding was kept deliberately small

Ronaldo and Rodríguez married at 1.30pm on August 11 at their mansion in the exclusive Quinta da Marinha area of Cascais, with a registrar travelling from Porto to officiate.The couple had previously given the public almost no reliable information about their plans. Reports had even sent hundreds of fans and journalists to Funchal Cathedral in Madeira after it was wrongly claimed that Ronaldo would marry there.Instead, the couple married privately in Cascais and announced the news only afterwards, posting photographs of their wedding rings with the caption “C❤️G.”