Pre-season is all about getting fitness levels up.
Teams arrange friendly matches against opposition primarily to get players back up to speed.
More than the result, fitness and performances are more important in pre-season.
But getting a victory doesn’t hurt.
A Manchester United XI beat National League North side Chester FC in a friendly last night.
The game was played at the Deva Stadium, the home of the sixth tier side.
United’s XI was primarily made up of a mixture of players from the Under-21s and Under-18s.
There was also a place for recent trialist Tommy Rowe, who is believed to be considered for a player-coach role at the club. This would be something akin to what Tom Huddlestone was doing for a couple of years.
In the game itself, the match ended 3-1 to the Red Devils.
Gabriele Biancheri opened the scoring for the visitors after six minutes on the clock.
On 10 minutes, The Seals were level as Tom Seers scored from a set-piece.
Bianchieri scored his and his side’s second on 36 minutes, before 16-year-old James Bailey capitalised on a defensive slip to seal the victory on 84 minutes.
It was an impressive result for a young United squad. Playing and beating senior opposition at any level is great experience for young players.
And United fans who follow academy football will hope that this is promising signs for the season ahead for the youth teams at Old Trafford.
United XI: Harrison, Nolan, Aljofree, Fredricson, Rowe, T. Fletcher, McAllister, Thwaites, Sharpe, Williams, Biancheri.
Substitutes: Myles, Jackson, Kamason, Kingdon, Armer, Fitzgerald, Baumann, Devaney
Minutes in the tank. 🔋
Just 2⃣ pre-season games remain. ⌛️
Next up, @altrinchamfc on Saturday! 👊#AllOfUs | #UTS— Chester FC (@ChesterFC) July 25, 2024
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