Cadiz 4-2 Manchester United: Player ratings as Red Devils lose goal fest friendly

Manchester United fell to a 4-2 defeat against La Liga's Cadiz in the first of two mid-season friendlies.

A heavily rotated United outfit showed their lacking sharpness in the first half, falling two goals down early on but managing to pull one back before the break. A much younger XI took to the pitch for the second half and their age showed despite flashes of brilliance, as Cadiz fought back for a win.

Having not played a game of football in almost a month, United returned to the pitch in only the way they could - by conceding from a set-piece after eight minutes. Cadiz switched the angle of a free-kick from deep and Carlos Garcia snuck in behind the jumping Victor Lindelof to head beyond Martin Dubravka for 1-0.

Just as United tried to get to grips and shake off the cobwebs, they found themselves 2-0 down mere moments later. Committing plenty of bodies forward, Cadiz were able to steal back possession and piece together a counter attack down the right flank. Aaron Wan-Bissaka was unable to get the tackle in on Alex Fernandez, who squared for Anthony Lozano to score with ease.

United pulled one back after 21 minutes from the penalty spot. Zidane Iqbal did incredibly well to work his way into the 18-yard box and was brought down, before Anthony Martial pulled together his best Achraf Hakimi impression from 12 yards to score.

Proceedings calmed down after a rather hectic opening 25 minutes, with United settling down into a groove of sustained possession and Cadiz looking to counter. Ten Hag's side built up play well in spells, with loose passes and poor touches to be expected to an extent.

They weren't always fluid, however, and continually swapped wingers in an attempt to find a more regular pattern. Cadiz never looked too stretched and always had an outlet when able to attack down United's right flank, taking their lead into half-time as a result with the Red Devils stuck in second gear.

As expected, wholesale changes were made for the second half, with United's XI now closely resembling the one that won the FA Youth Cup last season. Kobbie Mainoo, highly rated by United fans, levelled the scores almost immediately after the break, cutting inside and curling low into the far corner with his left foot.

But their inexperience began to show through as Cadiz pulled themselves back onto the front foot, controlling possession, dictating tempo and restoring their lead just shy of the hour mark. Ruben Sorino got onto the end of a wicked, in-swinging cross that caught United's young backline out when trying to play offside.

Ten Hag's much-changed and now incredibly youthful side made a better account of themselves in the final 20 minutes or so. Their shape was good and they broke beyond the Cadiz press on a number of occasions, putting together slick passing sequences. However, they were punished for a mistake on the ball with little over 10 minutes to go, as Tomas Alarcon made it 4-2.

With plenty for the younger crop to learn from in a brilliant opportunity to pull on the United shirt, Ten Hag will be more concerned with the first-team players' slow start and how they respond against Real Betis at the weekend.

Manchester United player ratings (4-2-3-1)

GK: Martin Dubravka - 5/10 - Could do nothing stop either of the two early goals. Not the most convincing display, however; nervy in spells. The only player to survive the flurry of half-time changes.

RB: Aaron Wan-Bissaka - 4/10 - The ring rust was apparent. Really should've gotten closer to Fernandez for Cadiz's second and still severely limited when trying to attack.

CB: Teden Mengi - 4/10 - A first appearance for United's senior team since January following struggles with injury, but not the one he'd have hoped for. Mengi looked out of his depth.

CB: Victor Lindelof - 4/10 - As the senior man in defence, you'd have expected a lot more from Lindelof. Not a performance that's going to force him back in over Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez.

LB: Brandon Williams - 5/10 - Tried to invert when United were in possession, but having two right-footed players on the left flank at all times didn't make that particularly smooth.

CM: Zidane Iqbal - 7/10 - Took his chance once again, much like in pre-season. Always keen to get on the ball and impose himself onto the game. A really confident and mature showing.

CM: Scott McTominay - 6/10 - Could've done more to get back in for Cadiz's second, but not primarily his fault. Dictated tempo nicely.

RW: Alejandro Garnacho - 6/10 - United's final scorer before the World Cup began looked desperate for a way into the game by continually switching flanks, but couldn't find it.

AM: Donny van de Beek - 5/10 - Not helped by poor passing around him in the first half, but didn't take the game by the scruff of the neck like fans perhaps hoped he would.

LW: Anthony Elanga - 4/10 - Struggled to get to grips with the speed of play, which hurt United. Caught offside, not able to kill passes with his first touch and equally not great at picking them out going forward.

ST: Anthony Martial - 7/10 - Ice cold penalty. Held up play well after that. United need to keep this man fit for the second half of the season. Wrap him up in bubble wrap, Erik.

Substitutes

Marc Jurado - 6/10 - Naive to try and catch Cadiz offside; should've tried to clear the cross regardless. He'll learn from it. Picked up after that and showed a desire to get forward.

Di'Shon Bernard - 6/10 - A forgotten name among United fans. Composed display considering the lack of minutes.

Tyler Fredericson - 5/10 - Nothing major to report.

Sam Murray - 5/10 - Pressed well on the left-hand side which complimented Shoretire ahead of him. Naïve defensively, though - plenty to learn from and work on.

Kobbie Mainoo - 7/10 - That's how you make an impact. The highly-regarded 17-year-old showed his impressive technique minutes after being introduced with a well-taken goal.

Charlie Savage - 6/10 - Grew in influence and was the most composed in possession.

Noam Emeran - 6/10 - Drifted in and out of the game, but can be pleased with his performance.

Isak Hansen-Aaroen - 6/10 - Lots of cool tattoos and a few nice touches of the ball. That's about it.

Shola Shoretire - 5/10 - Flashes of what he's capable of, but no standout moments. Fouled a lot.

Charlie McNeill - 5/10 - Wasn't afraid to drop deep for the ball and try to make late, penetrative runs, but completely starved of service.

Manager

Erik ten Hag - 6/10 - Difficult game to judge the manager by, with so many changes and the main aim being to gain match sharpness. Nice to see him give so many youth players a go, though, and clearly instructed his team to try and take up a dominant shape on the ball.