Five things spotted in Man Utd training: Ten Hag’s instructions, Ronaldo’s absence and more

Manchester United’s second week of pre-season training is well under way, with Erik ten Hag having a full group to work with since Monday. Well, almost…

There has been one major absence from Carrington this week, with Cristiano Ronaldo not reporting for training.

The Red Devils fly to Thailand on Friday for the first part of their pre-season tour, with a game scheduled against Liverpool next Tuesday. But whether the 37-year-old attacker will be part of the group remains unknown.

As for the rest of the group, they looked in good spirits during the latest training video, which was published on the club’s official accounts on Tuesday, showing action from Monday’s session.

We’ve had a look through the six-minute video and picked out the best and most intriguing aspects from Ten Hag’s second week on the grass.

Players emerge together

It was notable that United players emerged onto the Carrington pitch together as one unit in the latest video.

In previous years, the Red Devils tended to spill out in dribs and drabs, with smaller groups coming out of the changing room over a period of a few minutes.

A lot has been made of Ten Hag’s desire for this group to be united, and, trivial as it may seem, this is an early indication that he aims to remove the cliques and divides which appeared such an issue last season.

International players back

Monday’s session was the first involving those United players who played in international fixtures over June.

The likes of Bruno Fernandes, Harry Maguire, Fred and Scott McTominay were back at Carrington, and that particular group were spotted undergoing their own fitness regime, with the other players a week ahead in their pre-season fitness schedule.

It was also noticeable that several of the younger members who made up the squad last week weren’t involved, with numbers now beefed up after the return of the international players.

Two stars missing

While United’s international stars were back in action, one player’s absence was unmistakable: Ronaldo.

The Portugal international was allowed to miss training due to ‘family reasons’, although he also was not back at Carrington on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Ronaldo is being heavily linked with a move away from the club, with recent reports claiming he wants to play Champions League football next season.

Another player who wasn’t spotted in training was new signing Tyrell Malacia. The left-back was announced as the club’s first summer signing on Tuesday, but was at Carrington the day prior completing his medical.

ManchesterWorld understands Malacia completed an individual session away from the rest of the group while his visa was awaiting approval.

Coaches getting involved

Erik ten Hag and his two assistant coaches Steven McClaren and Mitchell van der Gaag were heavily involved in the training session, with the trio all handing out instructions during the video.

At one stage there was a shout of ‘Bruno, to the right foot’, while an off-screen voice - that sounded very much like Ten Hag - was heard telling the group there were ‘too many mistakes’.

Ten Hag’s hands-on approach is a big shift from his predecessors Ralf Rangnick and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who allowed their coaches to deal with the majority of the drills.

Fred’s new look

There’s alway one player who reports back for pre-season with a new haircut, and it’s Fred this summer who’s looking slightly different.

The Brazilian has let his hair grow out a little, in a style that’s a subtle, but noticeable, change from the 2021/22 campaign.

Fred was captured on camera grinning and joking with his team-mates, and was one of the international players who returned to the session on Monday.