As thousands of fans head to the United App to predict the line-up for Sunday’s Premier League opener against Brighton & Hove Albion, four experts have been discussing Erik ten Hag’s options in front of MUTV’s cameras. Former players David May and Ben Thornley and journalists Neil Custis (The Sun) and Rob Dawson (ESPN) all put forward the sides they think the new Reds manager will field for his first competitive game, after watching the six pre-season friendlies, in which 34 different players featured. There’s competition for places throughout the team, of course, but, based on the evidence of the last two warm-up fixtures in particular, played on consecutive days last weekend against Atletico Madrid and Rayo Vallecano, the four pundits who appeared in Monday’s episode of The Debate were broadly in agreement about much of the XI that will start at Old Trafford this coming Sunday.
As you will see in the video clip, Thornley thinks centre-backs Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane will pick up from where they left off against Rayo Vallecano and be paired together again for the first Premier League game. “That might raise a few people’s eyebrows but I think they looked a really solid combination,” said Ben, defending his prediction. While ex-defender May also feels Martinez will start, alongside either Varane or captain Harry Maguire, journalist Custis expects the latter to be given the nod after Ten Hag’s recent endorsement of the England international. “After the backing he’s had from the manager as captain, and if he’s fit, I would find it odd if Maguire doesn’t start instead of Varane,” said Custis.
“He [Maguire] played through injuries last season and always made himself available. You look at that as character and think, is that not what the club needs in the centre there? “If he can stay free of injury, he can prove a lot of people wrong because in his first season [at the club], he was as good a centre-half as United have had since Rio [Ferdinand] and [Nemanja] Vidic. People forget that.” Manchester United defender Lisandro Martinez has been warned that the strikers he will face in the Premier League will be different to the ones who lined up against him in Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Rayo Vallecano. The friendly marked the Argentine’s debut for his new club, and he impressed onlookers with his competent play. Martinez is expected to partner Harry Maguire for United’s opening Premier League clash with Brighton on Sunday.
He already understands Erik ten Hag’s style of play having worked under him at Ajax for three years. He was named the club’s Player of the Year last season as he lifted his second Eredivisie title with the new United boss. Erik ten Hag’s competitive debut threatens to be overshadowed by protests against the Glazer family. The 1958, a group dedicated to the removal of the incumbent ownership, protested vociferously over the American ownership in the final three home games of last season. Those protests look set to continue on Sunday, with a march set to begin at 12pm with the intention of having the Megastore at Old Trafford’s East Stand and the directors’ entrance in the Munich tunnel closed off. In their rally letter, the 1958 made their views on the owners clear:
But new boss Ten Hag, who was appointed at the end of the season, is looking to bring a new style of football to Old Trafford. The former Ajax boss is known for his creative style of play and his fondness for playing out from the back. He’s also brought in a few new signings, including Lisandro Martinez for £45m from Ajax, and Christian Eriksen on a free from Brentford. – but the big storyline of the summer has been Cristiano Ronaldo’s desire to leave the club. United will want to get things off to the perfect start when they clash with the Seagulls at the Theatre of Dreams on Sunday afternoon.
Manchester United is going head to head with Brighton & Hove Albion starting on 7 Aug 2022 at 13:00 UTC at Old Trafford stadium, Manchester city, England. The match is a part of the Premier League. Currently, Manchester United rank 14th, while Brighton & Hove Albion hold 5th position. Looking to compare the best-rated player on both teams? rating system assigns each player a specific rating based on numerous data factors. On livescore you can find all previous Manchester United vs Brighton & Hove Albion results sorted by their H2H matches. SofaScore also provides the best way to follow the live score of this game with various sports features. Therefore, you can:
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Event details:
NAME: Manchester United – Brighton & Hove Albion
DATE: 7 Aug 2022
TIME: 13:00 UTC
VENUE: Old Trafford, Manchester, England