Michael Carrick Faces His Predecessor as Manchester United Take on Ruben Amorim’s AC Milan in Wroclaw

The Setup

Manchester United close out their 2026 pre-season tour Saturday with a friendly against AC Milan at the Tarczynski Arena in Wroclaw, Poland. Kickoff is at 4:45 p.m. Central European Time. What makes this match different from a standard pre-season fixture is the man in the opposing dugout: Ruben Amorim, who managed United until January before being sacked, and who took charge of Milan in June.
Michael Carrick, the man who replaced Amorim at Old Trafford, will be on the touchline for United. It is the first time the two managers have faced each other directly since Amorim’s departure, and both sets of players have their own personal history with the other side’s coach.

What United Bring Into This Game

Carrick has taken United through five pre-season fixtures with mostly encouraging results. The squad beat Rosenborg and Atletico Madrid before drawing with Leeds United at Croke Park in Dublin, with United winning that game on penalties after Joshua Zirkzee scored in normal time. Carrick said after the Leeds match that everyone came through injury-free, which he described as huge heading into the final preparation game.
Twenty-six players have been called up for the Wroclaw trip. The most notable returnees are Marcus Rashford, Kobbie Mainoo, and Lisandro Martinez, who all missed earlier pre-season matches after reaching the latter stages of the 2026 World Cup. Rashford has not played for United since December 2024. He spent a loan spell at Aston Villa and then Barcelona under Amorim’s tenure at Old Trafford, and both he and Mainoo had difficult relationships with their former manager. Both players are expected to feature against Amorim’s Milan side, giving the match an added edge.
New signings Youri Tielemans, Andrey Santos, and Karl Darlow have all been involved in pre-season and are expected to feature again here. United open their Premier League season against Hull next weekend.

What Milan Bring Into This Game

Amorim has had a difficult start to life in Italy. Milan have played four pre-season fixtures under him — a 7-0 win over their reserve side Milan Futuro, draws against Celtic and Inter Milan, and a 3-0 defeat to Chelsea. He is still looking for a meaningful win against senior opposition. The pressure on him to show progress has already attracted criticism in the Italian press, and the squad is in a state of transition.
Earlier this week, Milan held a meeting between Amorim and club owner Gerry Cardinale that resulted in Christopher Nkunku, Youssouf Fofana, David Odugo, and Fikayo Tomori all being left out of the squad. Portuguese forward Goncalo Ramos, signed from Paris Saint-Germain for a club-record fee of 74 million euros, came off the bench against Chelsea and may be handed a first start here. Luca Modric, son of Real Madrid legend Luka Modric, is also in the squad and expected to feature.
Rafael Leao and Christian Pulisic are both absent through injury, which limits Milan’s attacking options.

Why This Match Matters Beyond the Result

For United, this is their last chance to build rhythm and cohesion before competitive football begins. Carrick has been clear he wants more transfer business done before the window closes, and his selection choices here may offer clues about who he views as first-team regulars. For Amorim, facing his former club carries obvious emotional weight. He managed United for 14 months, won 25 of his 63 matches, and was sacked in January after a breakdown in his relationship with the club’s hierarchy. He will want to put that chapter behind him, and a result against United would help.
Defender Noussair Mazraoui, who played under Amorim at United, said this week that it would be good to see his former manager again, calling it a big game against a big club. He kept his comments warm without going further than that

LaLiga 2026-27 Season Kicks Off Without the Big Three

Separately, the new LaLiga season gets underway this weekend, but Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Atletico Madrid will all sit out the opening round of fixtures. The three clubs have been given additional recovery time following their players’ involvement in the 2026 World Cup and extended pre-season schedules. All three return to action in the second round of matches next week. Barcelona enter the season as defending champions.
Source: The Independent, Sempre Milan, beIN Sports, United In Focus, Roundtable, Al Jazeera