Man United face Leeds United in their opening game of their pre-season schedule at the Friends Arena on Saturday.
George is a Senior Football Writer for the Manchester Evening News, mostly covering Manchester United. He previously worked for football.london before joining the MEN team in July 2021. As well as covering United, George is a Championship-enthusiast and co-hosts The Championship Chat Podcast (@Champchatpod24), which you can find on all major podcast platforms.
Matheus Cunha (right) is poised to get his first outing for Manchester United against Leeds.(Image: Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images.)
Manchester United will be eyeing a winning start to pre-season when they face Leeds United at the Friends Arena in Stockholm this afternoon.
The trip to the Swedish capital will mark the first of five friendlies United will play ahead of their Premier League opener against Arsenal at Old Trafford on August 17.
They will fly across the Atlantic next week for their pre-season tour of the United States, playing three games as part of the Premier League Summer Series, before returning to Old Trafford for a game against Fiorentina on August 9.
Head coach Ruben Amorim will only be able to hand out two unofficial debuts to new signings against Leeds after a relatively slow start to the summer transfer window. Matheus Cunha joined the club from Wolves last month, before Diego Leon arrived from Paraguayan club Cerro Porteno earlier this month.
Pre-season is the perfect time for any head coach to experiment and test the water, and Amorim is expected to do exactly that over the next few weeks. There is a strong chance he could field two completely different XIs in either half against Leeds.
With Andre Onana unavailable because of a hamstring injury, the door has opened for Altay Bayindir to start United’s pre-season opener.
If Amorim intends on deploying his strongest possible XI from the start against Leeds, Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt and Ayden Heaven will be pushing for starting berths. Other centre-back options include the likes of Harry Maguire, Tyler Fredricson and Godwill Kukonki.
As far as the wing-backs are concerned, Amad and Luke Shaw returned to Carrington a few days before Diogo Dalot and Patrick Dorgu, who were both on international duty at the end of last season, meaning they could start. Harry Amass has not travelled to Sweden amid the expectation he will head out on loan.
Despite United’s interest in signing a midfielder this summer, it is difficult to call who could start in the engine room.
Toby Collyer will be hoping to make his mark this summer.(Image: Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images.)
Toby Collyer was back at Carrington on the first day of pre-season, meaning that could see him bag a start. Bruno Fernandes, as captain, may also be in line for a start.
All eyes will be on Cunha and he is highly likely to get his first outing in United colours from the start as the left-sided No.10. Mason Mount could take the other playmaker role.
United are still searching for a striker, meaning Rasmus Hojlund could be tasked with leading the line for the pre-season opener. Chido Obi will also be eyeing some minutes.
How Manchester United could line up against Leeds United.
United predicted XI vs Leeds United: Bayindir; Yoro, De Ligt, Heaven; Amad, Collyer, Fernandes, Shaw; Mount, Cunha; Hojlund.
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