International Champions Cup: 5 key takeaways for Manchester United from their match against AC Milan

Manchester United and AC Milan kicked off their International Champions Cup 2018 campaigns earlier today at the StubHub Center in Carson, California. The match ended in a 1-1 draw and as the scoreline suggests, the 90 minutes were pretty even. Even past the 90 minutes, the match seemed so even that it took 26 kicks of the ball from the penalty spot for a team to come out on top. The match eventually ended 9-8 in favour of Manchester United.

Here we look at 5 takeaways from the match from a Manchester United perspective.

#1 Alexis Sanchez's performance

The Chilean looked by far the best player on the pitch in a United shirt. While most players not participating in the World Cup took their vacation break as an opportunity to kick back and relax, Alexis Sanchez was quietly working to keep himself in top shape for the coming season and his fitness levels looked top notch against Milan.

Sanchez's pace and movement caused a lot of problems for the Milan defence and he seemed dangerous every time he got the ball. He was very quick on the counter and was able to hold up the ball very well. He also worked very hard and ran his heart out throughout the match. He also capped his performance with a slick finish to put United up 1-0, and a very well taken penalty in the shootout.

Alexis Sanchez looks fitter, quicker and sharper than last season and United fans could be in for a treat if he continues in this fashion.

#2 Shaky Defending

Chris Smalling tussling for the ball against Milan - AC Milan v Manchester United - International Champions Cup 2018 - TOPSHOT-FBL-US-ICC-MILAN-MAN UTD

United set up against Milan with three centre-backs and two wing-backs, slightly reminiscent of the way England had approached their ties at the World Cup in Russia earlier. Eric Bailly, Chris Smalling and Axel Tuanzebe all started in defence for United.

One would be forgiven for thinking Milan would have had a hard time finding their way through three centre-backs but that was not the case. All three of them looked absolutely lost when Suso got in behind them with a clever run to equalize on the 15-minute mark. Suso was played on-side by Smalling and Bailly while Tuanzebe fell asleep marking him. This gave him space and time to slot the ball past Lee Grant in the United goal.

This was an experiment from Mourinho which might have just worked as they conceded only the one goal but throughout the match the defence never looked solid. United have been in the market for a centre-back with Harry Maguire and Toby Alderweireld being their top targets. Looking at the United backline's display today, one can understand the reason.

#3 Andreas Pereira Shines Again

Andreas Pereira slotting home a penalty in the shootout - AC Milan v Manchester United - International Champions Cup 2018

This young man has really started to impress fans this pre-season and he's putting in solid performances one after the other. He has featured heavily in all three of United's pre-season matches so far and has looked as though he has been playing in their midfield forever.

Throughout the match, Pereira kept the midfield organized with neat passing and positioning. Like in the first two pre-season games, Pereira always looked for the ball and distributed it really well. On a couple of instances, he turned defence into attack really quickly and one instance stood out. On collecting the ball in United's half, Pereira launched a precise aerial ball to find Alexis charging through the Milan defence, setting up a swift counter-attacking move for United. He capped his performance with two excellent penalties in the shootout.

Expect him to start all matches for United during their pre-season and maybe start getting his name on the teamsheet in the upcoming season as well.

#4 Luke Shaw fails to Impress

This is a big pre-season for the young English left-back ahead of what seems like a make-or-break season. Luke Shaw has not had the best of times at United but he has an opportunity this pre-season to turn around his fortunes.

So far, by the looks of it, it just doesn't seem to be happening for him. He did not look assured in his defensive duties, constantly giving away possession. The two flying wing-back system was set up well for Shaw and Darmian to bomb forward but every time Shaw did venture forward, he looked a little lethargic. He tried cutting in several times but could make nothing of it. If he took it outside, on the wing, his end product went missing. His only effort of note throughout the match was a low shot from outside the box which drew a fine save from Pepe Reina who had just come on to take his place between the posts for Milan.

If Luke Shaw continues to put in displays like this, Ashley Young will remain United's first choice left back for the season.

#5 Counter-attacking United

Mourinho set up a very different looking United side against Milan. United were missing a majority of their first team, with the first-team stars taking a well-deserved break after their involvement in the World Cup. This gave the United manager some freedom to experiment with the starting XI.

Mourinho fielded a formation reminiscent of England's from their recently concluded World Cup campaign. Matteo Darmian and Luke Shaw started as wing-backs and had a lot of opportunities to bomb forward along their respective touchlines. They got into good positions but could not make much of it.

Milan dominated the ball for large parts of the match but United looked much more threatening when they attacked, thanks to their pace and aggression on the counter. Alexis, Mata, McTominay and Pereira were all frequently involved each time United broke from defence to attack, with support from the two wing-backs. It was refreshing to see this kind of play from a United side that often tended to slow down the tempo of the game.

A similar sort of directness and tempo in attack, especially with Lukaku, Pogba, Lingard back, could be very fruitful in the coming season.