Michael Carrick had his Man Utd players working with the ball for the first time since returning to training, and three things stood out.
The Man Utd players reported back for pre-season on July 9, but first, they had to go through fitness tests and checks.
Then it was some running and fitness drills to get the players up to speed and in rhythm, which has now been followed by what the players liked best.
Here are three things noticed as Michael Carrick had his players working with the ball for the first time since returning for pre-season.
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1- Toby Collyer returns to full first-team training
After a stop-start 2025/26 for Toby Collyer, he will want to make a mark in this pre-season, especially due to a light midfield roster as a result of World Cup call-ups.
He had two separate loan spells, at West Brom and Hull City, which were both hampered by injuries, but weren’t without glimpses of exciting potential.
Collyer’s ceiling is clearly that of a Premier League midfielder. Only his injuries can stop him from achieving that level.
Now that he’s in full first-team training at Carrington, he needs to take it up a notch and force the club to keep him as a squad option ahead of a busy season.
2- Tyler Fredricson emerges from forgotten status
If Collyer had a difficult time at two different loan spells, Tyler Fredricson had a nightmare season while still at Old Trafford.
Since having a disastrous game in that loss to Grimsby in the Carabao Cup, Fredricson dropped from the first-team picture as if he never existed.
Injury worries compounded a poor season that went by in a flash, with poor performances and a lack of games pushing him firmly into the background.
He was seen in the batch of photos released by Man Utd’s official website, training with the senior team, and has quite a task ahead of him.
He is effectively starting from scratch again after a breakthrough 2024/25 season, and needs these games to convince some team to take a punt on him.
It’s highly unlikely that he stays at United this season, but where he ends up, and how (loan or permanent), depends on how his pre-season goes.
3- Big season for Ayden Heaven
Ayden Heaven was the biggest loser from United’s truncated season of just 40 games in 2025/26.
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After a breakout 2024/25 which exceeded all expectations, Heaven had to take a step back and watch the action unfold from the bench more often than not.
He continued to give exciting glimpses of his potential in limited minutes, and the stage is set for him to take a leap in 2026/27.
Heaven has the advantage of starting the pre-season fresh and from the beginning, and he looked in fine spirits and fit to take on the challenge.
He can be the £80m centre-back United will be looking for next season, and it all begins this pre-season.
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