Manchester United beat Rosenborg 5-0 in a pre-season friendly at Lerkendal Stadion in Trondheim on Friday, turning a narrow half-time lead into an emphatic result with a four-goal second-half surge. The scoring was led by the teenage forward Shea Lacey and Joshua Zirkzee, with manager Rúben Amorim's heavily rotated, youthful side pulling clear late against a Rosenborg team that, unusually for a summer opponent, is in the thick of its own competitive season.
United had to be patient. They led only 1-0 at the break and did not put the game away until the closing stages, when the gap widened quickly. The final margin flattered the balance of the first hour, but there was no arguing with the quality of the goals or the depth of United's attacking options.
How the goals came
Lacey opened the scoring in the 31st minute, collecting a through ball, dummying inside a defender and curling a finish into the far corner — the kind of composed strike that gets an academy prospect noticed against senior opposition. Zirkzee doubled the lead in the 56th minute, pouncing on a loose clearance, beating his man and finishing calmly for a goal that drew praise for its ease.
From there United ran away with it. Jacob Devaney added a third after the hour, Ethan Williams struck late to make it four, and a fifth followed in the closing minutes to complete the 5-0 win. The spread of scorers — a mix of academy names and rotation players — was as notable as the scoreline itself, underlining the strength in depth Amorim was able to call on.
A real test, comfortably passed
Pre-season friendlies are usually measured less by the result than by fitness and combinations, and this one carried an added wrinkle: Rosenborg were not the half-fit July opponent touring clubs often meet. The Norwegian top flight runs through the summer, and Freyr Alexandersson's side — sitting mid-table in the Eliteserien — came in match-sharp. That United's changed lineup still won by five says something about the gulf in resources, even in a low-stakes fixture.
For United, the run-out did its job and then some. Amorim, in charge since late 2024, has used the summer to build rhythm and hand minutes to fringe and academy players ahead of the 2026-27 campaign, and an evening that produced goals for youngsters like Lacey, Devaney and Williams is close to an ideal return. The sides had met once before, in a friendly at this same ground in 2024, giving the result a small thread of history — and this time the visitors left no doubt.
The scoreboard at the top of this page reflects the confirmed full-time result. Goal times and scorers are drawn from live match coverage; some later goals were reported with slightly differing details across outlets.
