Manchester United brace for Fulham test in 2024/25 Premier League opener

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Manchester United are set to face Fulham in the first match of the 2024/25 English Premier League season at the Old Trafford on Friday.

United finished eighth on the table last term but won the FA Cup, securing a European spot in the process. Manager Erik Ten Hag came under scrutiny due to his team’s poor performance but still somehow managed to keep his job.

Heading into this season, they will hope to improve far better than last time out and Fulham will be their first test.

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Preview

The Red Devils have signed the likes of Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, Noussair Mazraoui and Matthijs de Ligt to bolster their squad. Fulham will also depend on the likes of clinical forward Rodrigo Muniz and former Arsenal man Emile Smith-Rowe ahead of this encounter.

In a repeat of this fixture last term, the Cottagers went back to London as 2-1 winners. Nigeria’s Super Eagles players Calvin Bassey and Alex Iwobi scored to condemn the Red Devils to a home loss. Iwobi’s goal was a 97th-minute winner.

Having lost key midfielder Joao Palhinha to Bayern Munich, Marco Silva will have to find how to curtail a United midfield that will likely parade Casemiro and star boy Kobbie Mainoo. Defenders Tim Ream and Tosin Adarabioyo have also left Fulham, with the latter joining Chelsea.

Team news

For United, new signing Yoro suffered a foot injury during pre-season and will be out for a couple of weeks.

Meanwhile, De Ligt and Mazraoui could be given starting berths after both players arrived from Bayern earlier this week.

Another pre-season casualty, Rasmus Hojlund won’t be fit until after the September international break. Tyrell Malacia continues to remain sidelined. Defenders Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, and Victor Lindelof are all facing fitness concerns.

Silva has a fit Fulham squad ahead of Friday night’s contest.

Match venue and Kick off time

The Manchester United-Fulham game will be played at the Old Trafford,  Manchester, UK.

Kick off is at 20:00 BST/GMT+1/WAT on Friday, 16 August, 2024.

H2H

In their last five meetings, Manchester United have won four times while Fulham have won once.

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