Published Aug 13, 2026, 7:10 AM GMT+1

The Whites held the Red Devils to a 1-1 draw in normal time before penalty misses from Harry Wilson and James Justin allowed their opponents to seal the win.

Daniel Farke's side now play one last match against Augsburg at Elland Road before they travel to Nottingham Forest for their Premier League opener next week.

Pre-season is about experimentation and learning about the squad to prepare for the new season, and the German head coach will have learned plenty against Man United.

What Daniel Farke learned against Manchester United

The Leeds boss will have learned, if he did not already know, that he needs to add more quality to the depth of his attacking options, as the Whites looked ineffective outside of Brenden Aaronson's goal in the first half.

Lukas Nmecha cut a frustrated figure up front, as he looked isolated from the rest of the side, and bringing in a new striker could be on the agenda before the end of the window, with Burnley star Zian Flemming emerging as a target.

Farke, therefore, may want to push for the club to bring in another number nine for the upcoming season after seeing the difference in quality between the first and second halves.

On the flip side of that, the former Norwich City boss might have learned that he does not need a new recruit in midfield, after missing out on Shea Charles earlier this month.

Leeds already have a better talent than Shea Charles

The Whites had made an offer to sign the Northern Ireland international from Southampton, but their bid was turned down and Fulham then swooped to sign him for a fee of up to £30m.

Leeds opted against paying £30m to sign the former Manchester City youth international, who only started 22 times in the Championship last term, and they may have made the right call.

Sean Longstaff has impressed throughout pre-season and he caught the eye once again with a dominant first-half display against Manchester United on Wednesday.

The former Newcastle United midfielder started alongside Ao Tanaka in the middle of the park in Farke's 3-4-2-1 formation and showed his quality against the Premier League giants.

Longstaff was a brick wall in midfield for the West Yorkshire outfit, as Michael Carrick's players lost the majority of their duels against him and failed to dribble past the midfielder a single time, before he was substituted at half-time.

The English talent showed physicality and technical quality, dominating in duels and being creative in possession, and that has been a theme throughout pre-season, as he has racked up two assists.

Longstaff only started ten of his 23 appearances in the Premier League in the 2025/26 campaign, yet he was still able to create six 'big chances' for his teammates and provided two assists.

The 28-year-old star also held his own in physical duels, winning 53% of his ground duels and 45% of his aerial battles, averaging 2.2 tackles and interceptions per match.

Charles, meanwhile, only created four 'big chances' in 22 starts in the division below, as he failed to offer as much in the way of creativity as Longstaff did in the Premier League.

With Ao Tanaka, Anton Stach, and Ethan Ampadu already in the building, Longstaff's form in pre-season suggests that the Whites do not need to add another midfielder to their ranks.

He is already a proven Premier League performer who looks like an even bigger talent than Charles, who is unproven in the top-flight, and he could be relied up on this season instead of a new signing being brought in.