Manchester United's season also begins. The club today announced the list of players called up for the pre-season tour of Thailand and Austria. Inevitably, the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo stands out.
The Portuguese is one of the 4 players absent from the list issued by the new coach Erik Ten Hag. The absence of CR7 will be prolonged for family reasons: this is the official explanation of United. Along with him, Phil Jones, Brandon Williams and Andreas Pereira are excluded.
Manchester United, those summoned for the pre-season tour
Manchester United have appointed a 31-man touring team for the 2022 Tour ahead of pre-season matches in Thailand and Australia.
Erik ten Hag selected his group for the away game with an opening match scheduled against Liverpool on Tuesday in Bangkok.
It will be the first overseas tour with United for several players, including experienced Harry Maguire and Bruno Fernandes, but also an opportunity for younger players to impress.
In total, 13 Academy graduates will travel, such as Alejandro Garnacho, Zidane Iqbal and Charlie Savage, who all made their senior debut last season. There are also places for some Reds who returned from loan periods last season, with Tahith Chong, James Garner and Ethan Laird among them.
Cristiano Ronaldo will not be part of the group leaving for Thailand as he has been granted an additional holiday period to deal with a family problem.
Defender Phil Jones is following a specialized pre-season schedule, as was the case last summer, to make sure he's best prepared for the campaign ahead. Brandon Williams, fresh from a loan period at Norwich City, has a small problem and therefore continues to work at Carrington.
Andreas Pereira is taking a break after his recent efforts in Brazil, on loan to Flamengo.
GOALKEEPERS: David De Gea, Tom Heaton, Nathan Bishop, Matej Kovar
DEFENDERS: Eric Bailly, Diogo Dalot, Ethan Laird, Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire, Tyrell Malacia, Luke Shaw, Alex Telles, Axel Tuanzebe, Raphael Varane, Aaron Wan-Bissaka
MIDFIELDERS: Amad, Bruno Fernandes, Fred, James Garner, Hannibal, Zidane Iqbal, Scott McTominay, Facundo Pellistri, Charlie Savage, Donny van de Beek
ATTACKERS: Tahith Chong, Anthony Elanga, Alejandro Garnacho, Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho
Written by Mohammed Ibrahim
