Planet Football

·25 July 2026

Planet Football

·25 July 2026

There can hardly have been a more frustrating Manchester United player than Joshua Zirkzee, kept on because the talent is there, yet written off because he so rarely shows it.

Since arriving from Bologna two years ago, the 25-year-old has scored five goals in 56 Premier League appearances.

In truth, Zirkzee’s spell at Old Trafford is most vividly recalled for how upset he looked after being booed in a miserable Amorim-era home defeat to Newcastle, his reaction when substituted turning the anger into sympathy.

A goal in pre-season is unlikely to alter anyone’s view of the Dutchman, other than to deepen the sense of contradiction around him.

To be fair, it is a genuine beauty. It is just wasted on a pre-season friendly in the damp sunshine of Norway.

If you are as old as us, you may remember Rosenborg regularly reaching the Champions League group stage in the 1990s and early 2000s. None of Europe’s elite teams fancied a trip to wintry Trondheim.

Their present side could almost be prosecuted under the Norwegian version of the Trade Descriptions Act, a group of limited footballers mentally counting down the minutes until the ordeal was over.

Like a family cat with an unwanted mouse, United toyed with Rosenborg before ruthlessly tearing them apart. Rarely has a 5-0 scoreline felt more justified.

There was still some sense of a contest at 1-0 when Zirkzee strolled into opposition territory, sending one Rosenborg defender off for a hotdog with a casual shimmy.

Once he was through on goal, United’s new Messi lookalike did exactly the same to the goalkeeper, putting him on the floor before rolling the ball into the net.

The metaphorical chef’s kiss, if ever there was one. That was followed by plenty of United fans asking where this version of him has been for two years.

“That’s the best place to be as a footballer, when you’re in that zone and you’re confident, and that’s my job to try and get the players in that frame of mind,” said Michael Carrick afterwards.

“The senior players at this stage, they’re finding their way, but you can see they’re in a good place and kind of getting used to having good results over a period of time, which is good.

“And the younger players, when you see them expressing themselves and being themselves and keep pushing themselves to be better, I think some of the play in the second half was really, really good, and I was delighted to see that from them.”

While Zirkzee is constantly being linked with a move back to Serie A, with Juventus said to be especially interested, there may be some value in keeping him in a season where the fixture load is much heavier.

United will need numbers, especially once the nights turn darker and they return to the Champions League and domestic cup grind.

Their pleasantly old-fashioned trip across Scandinavia continues against Atletico Madrid in Stockholm next Saturday, as Carrick keeps assessing the squad.

No tears would be shed if Zirkzee does leave Old Trafford, neither by the fast-shrinking group of season-ticket holders nor by the bean-counting spreadsheet men in the boardroom.

But the talent is clearly there – would Carrick be wise to try to make the most of it?