Manchester United had a number of representatives across the world in action for their nations on Tuesday, as the international break reached its conclusion.

Back between the sticks for Cameroon was Andre Onana, who produced a Man-of-the-Match performance against Zimbabwe to keep a clean sheet in their 0-0 draw in the Africa Cup of Nations qualifier, making five crucial saves in the game.

It caps off a strong break with the Indomitable Lions for the United man, who also managed to shut out Namibia on Saturday as his side clinched a slender one-goal victory; someething he will be looking to carry through to domestic action this weekend when we travel to Southampton.

He was not the Reds’ only African turnout, with forward Amad introduced just past the hour mark for Ivory Coast in their 2-0 triumph over Chad in the AFCON Group G clash, which they now top ahead of Zambia, Sierra Leone and their Tuesday evening opponents.

Gomes takes the plaudits after England win

It has been a positive trip for Amad as he made his return to international action with the Elephants, having missed the AFCON tournament that his nation won earlier this year.

Speaking to local media following Friday’s game against Zambia, a match which he started, Amad said: “For me already, it is a great pleasure to return to this selection. We have enough quality players.”

The 22-year-old winger has also worn the no.15 shirt over this break, a significant honour after it was left vacant following the retirement of Ivory Coast legend Max Gradel earlier this year.

“It’s a player who had longevity in the national team,” Amad said. “It’s nice to have his number and I also hope to have his longevity in the selection.”

There was further good news from South America on Tuesday evening as United newcomer Manuel Ugarte completed a full game in Uruguay’s midfield, alongside recently departed former Reds winger Facundo Pellistri. La Celeste unfortunately could not overcome Venezuela, the two sides holding each other at 0-0 on the night.

Due to his late signing, Ugarte missed pre-season and the beginning of the domestic 2024/25 campaign with the Reds, so seeing him up to speed and playing 90 minutes comes as a promising sign for his United debut over the coming days and weeks.

Argentinian duo Lisandro Martinez and Alejandro Garnacho were also on duty across the Atlantic for their nation’s game against Colombia. The former played the first hour at left-back — a position he took up for Erik ten Hag’s side earlier this year in the Community Shield — before being replaced by Marcos Acuna shortly after the interval.

Garnacho remained an unused substitute for the match, as Colombia triumphed 2-1, thanks to goals from Yerson Mosquera and James Rodriguez.

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Back on European soil, Matthijs de Ligt and Joshua Zirkzee were at the Johan Cruyff Arena to welcome Germany in their Nations League Group A3 clash. De Ligt started in the heart of defence alongside Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk but was withdrawn at the break for Brighton & Hove Albion’s Jan Paul van Hecke.

The Oranje ultimately drew the game 2-2 and forward Zirkzee, after picking up a goal and assist in the win against Bosnia & Herzegovina on Saturday, was given the night off on the bench.

Two United players, Harry Maguire and Kobbie Mainoo, were in the squad for England’s Group B2 bout against Finland at Wembley Stadium, but both were afford a rest as unused substitutes by Lee Carsley in his second game as interim head coach of the Three Lions. A Harry Kane brace on his 100th England appearance proved enough to take all three points, in a game that saw former Academy product Angel Gomes earn his first senior international start.

Those Reds involved in international action will now make their way back to Manchester to prepare for a tight turnaround, as we look ahead to our return to Premier League action this Saturday; a 12:30 BST kick-off, facing Southampton at St Mary’s Stadium.

Gomes takes the plaudits after England win

Former Manchester United midfielder Angel Gomes sparkled on his full senior debut for England, during the 2-0 victory over Finland at Wembley.

One of our many treasured youth-team graduates came on for Kobbie Mainoo in the win over Republic of Ireland at the weekend and followed it up by starting in the second UEFA Nations League encounter, affording a rest for our no.37.

Angel became United’s youngest-ever Premier League player when replacing Wayne Rooney in the game against Crystal Palace in 2017 and went on to make 10 first-team appearances for his boyhood club.

He left to join Lille in 2020 and, after an initial loan spell at Boavista in Portugal, has developed into a top operator.

Gomes has always been involved with England’s younger age groups and his former Under-21s boss Lee Carsley is a firm believer in his obvious talents.

The 24-year-old was a metronomic presence at the heart of the engine room on Tuesday night, completing 116 of his 124 passes, and setting the tone for the Three Lions. While Harry Kane’s two goals marked his 100th cap in style and dominated the headlines, there was plenty of praise for the former Red.

“He fully deserves it and it’s good that the performance you’ve seen today, we’ve seen over the last three or four years,” commented Carsley at his press conference. “It’s important he keeps working hard, like he will do, and keeps playing over in France because it’ll be a tough difficult squad to keep getting into.”

Ex-England skipper Stuart Pearce described Gomes’s display as one of the most accomplished full senior debuts for the nations he had seen, while Ian Wright enthused about his touch and the fact he was constantly available to receive possession. Fellow ITV pundit Roy Keane, our former captain, agreed Angel’s emergence will provide a selection headache for Carsley in the coming internationals.

Carsley also referenced the 2017 Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year’s sheer devotion to the game, something he shared with us in hi in 2020, when also detailing his relationship with former crowd pleaser Nani.

“He absolutely loves football,” added the interim England manager. “He watches football, he’s interested in tactics, he knows all the players in any league.

“If you ask him for any feedback, you need to be prepared that he is going to give you some feedback on the session or how we’re going to build up, or the positions.

“He’ll help in terms of he will often say about some build-ups that he’s done at other clubs or what he’s played against, because obviously he’s playing in France so he sees different things.”