Amad contract decision could reveal Manchester United plans for three more players

There were 886 days between Amad's third and fourth starts for Manchester United but three months after his Old Trafford career looked to be petering out, he could be about to secure one of the few places up for grabs in the starting XI at the start of this season.

If Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Hojlund have two of the front three roles locked down come the start of competitive action, then the third is up for grabs. On the evidence of this summer, it is Amad who must be in prime position at the moment to complete that triumvirate.

Jadon Sancho's return from exile has put his name into the equation, but this always looked to be a battle between Amad, Antony and Marcus Rashford. Despite being back at Carrington for the last two weeks Antony is yet to kick a ball in a friendly, while Rashford had a mundane opening against Rosenborg and then missed the trip to Edinburgh.

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Saturday's game was Amad's first of the summer and the Rangers support inside Murrayfield would have been perplexed at seeing the 22-year-old tear them apart in the first half. He looked like a young boy out of his depth in a six-month loan spell at Ibrox in 2022 but has suddenly found some momentum and confidence to resurrect his United career.

The right-winger was bright in starting the final three Premier League games of last season and was excellent on Saturday, causing no end of problems and taking his goal well. He should have had an assist as well in creating good chances for Ethan Wheatley and Sancho.

Ten Hag praised Amad's versatility post-match and he did well for Sunderland as a