Manchester United concluded their pre-season schedule with a frustrating and scrappy 1-1 draw against Serie A side Fiorentina at Old Trafford on Saturday. While the hosts eventually won a post-match penalty shootout, the 90-minute performance was largely underwhelming.
The main story of the day was the emotional return of a club legend to the Theatre of Dreams. Former Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea, now plying his trade for Fiorentina, was the star of the show. He made several crucial saves throughout the game and received a warm, lengthy standing ovation from the home crowd when he was substituted late on.
The positive atmosphere generated by the pre-match unveiling of new striker Benjamin Šeško quickly faded after kick-off. United made a nervy start to proceedings and were punished after just eight minutes, conceding a soft goal to Simon Sohm following some poor defending from a corner.
The Red Devils got back on level terms shortly before the half-hour mark through a slice of luck, as Fiorentina’s Robin Gosens scored an ugly own goal. Just before the interval, the returning De Gea made an excellent save to deny Leny Yoro, keeping the scores level.
United continued to struggle to create clear-cut chances in the second half, and it took them until the final 10 minutes to generate any real excitement, where De Gea once again made key stops to deny his former club.
The 90 minutes ended in a draw, but the day finished with a small victory for United in the post-match penalty shootout. Goalkeeper Altay Bayındır produced the decisive save, allowing young midfielder Kobbie Mainno to step up and score the winning spot-kick.
Despite the shootout win, it was a difficult and disjointed performance from Ruben Amorim’s side. The warm return of David De Gea was the main positive on a day that served as a concerning reality check just one week before their Premier League season begins against Arsenal.