Manchester United

Jordan Butler
BBC Sport journalist

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Manchester United hosting Arsenal at Old Trafford is perhaps the most eye-catching fixture on the opening weekend of the 2025-26 Premier League season.

It will be just the second time the two sides have faced each other in the opening game of a domestic league campaign.

The last time they did so, the Red Devils were comfortable 4-1 winners in 1989-90, with Steve Bruce and Mark Hughes among the scorers that day for Sir Alex Ferguson's side.

It is also only the fourth time the two teams will contest a league fixture in August, with United winning the previous three - including the famous 8-2 thrashing in 2011.

Coincidentally, it is the ninth consecutive season Manchester United have kicked off their campaign at home.

The last time they travelled away for an opening day fixture was in 2016-17, when Jose Mourinho's side won 3-1 at Bournemouth.

Manchester United and Arsenal target Viktor Gyokeres, 27, has refused to have clear-the-air talks with Sporting and threatened to go on strike as he tries to force through a move from the Portuguese club. (Mirror), external

Newcastle want to sign England forward Marcus Rashford on loan but Manchester United would prefer to offload the 27-year-old on a permanent basis. (Sun), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

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Following the release of the 2025-26 Premier League fixtures, we asked you to have your say on how the schedule has fallen and where Manchester United might be after 10 games.

Here are some of your comments:

Fred: This is sadly not the fixture list Ruben Amorim would have wanted for the start of the season. These first few games will be a trial by fire for his summer transfer window, and whether the new squad will adopt his tactics. Unfortunately, these games may be the final nails in his coffin.

Mark: Optimistically, and not knowing further ins and outs, I'm going to say we will be in the top six after 10 games. Likely to be at least two defeats - but who knows? The bigger games like Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City motivate this team and with no European games they may just surprise themselves.

Toby: They could lose five of their opening six games. Surely Amorim wouldn't survive that?

Tony: United face three of the top four in their first four fixtures. A good test for the new season - an improvement would be at least a draw against all three and not dropping points to the likes of Fulham and Burnley. If we're in the top half after 10, I think United could be hovering around the top six at the end.

Tristan: Within the first 10 games United are playing Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. The absolute best we can hope for after that is mid-table having not suffered too many embarrassing heavy defeats. If we can survive that, we can build up through the season - but, if not, the manager may not see his one-year anniversary.

Brendan: United will do well to finish sixth or seventh in the new season. Amorim has some tasty games to begin with and will either sink or swim early on. It will be a season of mediocrity but less chaos.

Opta has ranked the difficulty of each top-flight team's first five Premier League fixtures of the 2025-26 season.

According to Opta's model, Manchester United have the hardest start, followed by their opening-weekend opponents Arsenal and then Bournemouth.

Aston Villa's first five games have been ranked the easiest, alongside Crystal Palace.

Take a look below to see where your side places...

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Perhaps one of the reasons Manchester United have the best opening-day record in the Premier League era - with 22 wins from 33 games - is because they regularly kick off their campaigns at Old Trafford.

In fact, 2025-26 will be the ninth consecutive season the Red Devils start their season with home advantage. They have opened at home 23 times since the formation of the Premier League, a figure matched only by their first opponents this time around, Arsenal.

Opening fixtures at home in Premier League:

• Man Utd - 23

• Arsenal - 23

• Chelsea - 22

• Everton - 22

• Newcastle - 18

Andrew Bassett
BBC Sport data analyst

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We have seen a lot of traffic to our fixtures pages already today.

So far, Leeds United are the fourth most visited club fixtures page on BBC Sport.

Only Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal are ahead of the Whites.

Newly promoted Sunderland also catch the eye inside the top 10 - and in case you were wondering, they are behind Newcastle United.

Aside from the first game of the season against Arsenal and the final fixture of the season at Brighton, all dates are subject to change as a result of broadcast and other requirements.

See Man Utd's full fixture list here

Simon Stone
Chief football news reporter

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Manchester United director of academy Nick Cox is to become Everton's technical director.

Cox's departure from Old Trafford is said to be amicable and the 47-year-old will remain at the club to ensure a smooth transition.

It does promise to be a summer of change at United as under-18 coach Adam Lawrence and under-21 assistant coach David Hughes have also left, the latter to take over as manager at League Two Newport.

Cox is highly regarded in football circles and has been the subject of numerous job offers in recent years, both at home and abroad.

However, the chance at Everton under a new, ambitious ownership group was felt to be too good to turn down. The Blues' previous technical director Kevin Thelwell left at the end of the season and has since joined Rangers.

Senior United sources have paid tribute to Cox's work, stating he has overhauled every aspect of the club's academy, including operations, recruitment, analysis, performance and education.

During a difficult period at first-team level given the relative managerial churn, Cox has presided over 29 debuts from academy players since being appointed United's academy director in 2019.

United have also brought Alejandro Garnacho, Toby Collyer, Ayden Heaven, Chido Obi and Harry Amass into their academy from external sources in recent times, as the club look to target younger players as part of their rebuild.

Club sources estimate the club has made about £100m from the sale of academy players over the past three years.

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The first Manchester derby of the 2025-26 Premier League season will be at Etihad stadium on the weekend of 13-14 September with the return fixture early against Manchester City halfway through January.

The Red Devils will also have their eyes on the weekends of 18-19 October and 2-3 May, when they are due to face defending champions Liverpool.

After four defeats by Tottenham last season - including in the Europa League final - the first chance for revenge is scheduled for the weekend of 8-9 November.

And what about the schedule over Christmas and New Year? Well, United face Aston Villa, Newcastle and Wolves before travelling to Leeds for their first game of 2026.

Finally, they will close their campaign at Brighton on Sunday, 24 May 2026 - when all 10 matches will kick off at 16:00 BST.

Looking at the fixture list, where do you think Amorim's side will be after 10 games? Have your say here

Manchester United will host Arsenal in their opening game of the 2025-26 Premier League season.

The match will take place on Sunday, 17 August at 16:30 BST, with the Red Devils' first away fixture against Fulham on the weekend of 23-24 August.

See United's Premier League fixtures in full here

Where do you think Ruben Amorim's side will be after 10 games and what do you make of how the fixtures have fallen? Tell us here

Napoli are attempting to sign Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho, after his unsuccessful loan spell at Chelsea. (Gianluca di Marzio - in Italian), external

Meanwhile, United have agreed a one-year contract with 39-year-old goalkeeper. (Fabrizio Romano), external

Want more transfer news? Read Wednesday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Simon Stone
Chief football news reporter

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Manchester United chief executive Omar Berrada is sticking with his aim of marking the club's 150th anniversary in 2028 by winning the men's and women's league titles.

Berrada first outlined 'Project 150' to staff in September 2024.

United were founded as Newton Heath in 1878 and Berrada wants to mark the club's 150-year milestone in three years' time with a return to the summit of the English game.

Given the men's team just experienced their worst domestic campaign since the 1973-74 relegation season and the women have to usurp Chelsea's unbeaten Treble winners, the task is not easy.

But, in an in-depth interview with the United We Stand fanzine, external, to be published on Wednesday, Berrada says it is better to aim high than have no target at all.

"It's establishing a series of targets within a timeframe so we can focus our efforts and energy on that goal," the 47-year-old said.

"Can the team win the Premier League title by 2028? Of course.

"We've just finished 15th and it seems an impossible task. But why not aim for it? Why not do everything in our power?

"I firmly believe we can do it," he said of United's prospects.

"We have two or three summer windows to build a team to start competing to win the Premier League.

"Nobody is saying we don't want to win it until then. We're setting ourselves a target with a specific time frame to go and aim for."

Read the full piece here

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Our chief football writer Phil McNulty has been taking your questions.

CRob asked: I feel that Man Utd have a more consistent problem vs other clubs when it comes to public fall-outs between manager and gifted players, where the situation quickly becomes untenable. Would you agree? And why do you think this is? Surely every club is full of player egos that need to be carefully managed.

Phil McNulty: I do agree that too much of Manchester United's dirty laundry has been aired in public, with Erik ten Hag and Cristiano Ronaldo/Jadon Sancho, then Ruben Amorim and Marcus Rashford/Alejandro Garnacho.

I am not complaining, though, because it is gold dust for us in the media.

It is, however, a sign of a dysfunctional, unhappy club when all of this comes out into the open and this is just one of the many problems facing Manchester United as they try to bridge a huge gap between themselves and those they would regard as rivals.

Follow more from the Q&A with Phil here

The Devils' Advocate team at BBC Radio Manchester have dropped a latest episode.

This week, hosts Gaz Drinkwater and Joe McGrath talk Manchester United transfers and the greatest goal they have ever seen at Old Trafford.

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

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As the transfer window is now open again until 1 September, we asked for you to tell us one player you want to bring to Manchester United and one player you want the club to sell.

Here are some of your comments:

Carl: Semenyo in and Sancho out, one brings balance and the other endless problems.

James: Sell Garnacho and buy Gyokeres. He is a proven goalscorer.

David: Onana out, he's just not consistent. Toney in. We need a proven Premier League standard striker. We can't afford another 'let's hope he's good enough' type from a lower standard league.

Tim: Sell Luke Shaw and buy Marc Guehi.

Martin: Gyokores in and Hojlund out. We need to score more goals and this could be the season defining transfer.

Faisal: Sell Onana and replace him with Porto keeper Diogo Costa.

James: I would sell Garnacho and buy Wharton. Garnacho should fetch a decent fee and will do wonders from a PSR perspective. He is also a winger which doesn't truly fit Amorim's system. Wharton will bring a genuine, disciplined and athletic deep lying midfield playmaker which will allow Bruno to push up to more attacking areas where he is at his best. It will take a huge fee and wages to convince Palace to sell up and Wharton to go to a club with no European football.

Manchester United have held initial talks with Eintracht Frankfurt over the signing of France striker Hugo Ekitike, 22, but no formal bid has been made yet. (Sky Sports), external

Juventus have offered Sporting striker Viktor Gyokeres an £11m-a-year contract as they try to beat United and Arsenal to a deal for the 27-year-old Sweden international. (Mirror), external

Brentford and Cameroon forward Bryan Mbeumo, 25, is leaning towards a move to Old Trafford over Tottenham, despite his former manager Thomas Frank joining the latter. (Sky Sports News), external

Real Betis want to enter into a joint-ownership agreement with Manchester United for winger Antony that would see the Spanish club buy increasing percentages of his playing rights from next summer. (ABC - in Spanish), external

Napoli are aiming to sign either United winger Alejandro Garnacho or Jack Grealish from Manchester City, but the Italian champions are only willing to spend £45m. (Sun), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Tuesday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

No sooner does the season finish and we start looking forward to key dates for the next campaign - and that will be a lot easier to do on Wednesday when the Premier League fixtures are released.

That's right, that special day in the calendar is almost here already. The day when you'll learn details of derby fixtures, Christmas opponents and end-of-season run-ins.

This page will bring you all the fixtures when they drop at 09:00 BST on Wednesday and we'll be giving you the chance to have your say on how things look.

The new campaign kicks off on the weekend of Saturday, 16 August and it will conclude on Sunday, 24 May 2026, when all 10 games will take place at the same time.

Simon Stone
Chief football news reporter

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There are a lot of rumours and counter rumours but I am not getting the impression Manchester United are concerned about their attempt to sign Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford falling through.

Tottenham are keen on Mbeumo, who spoke to Sky Sports yesterday from the pit lane ahead of the F1 race in Montreal.

Mbeumo made it clear he did not want to talk about his future but did say he wished his old boss Thomas Frank good luck at Tottenham.

That could be interpreted in many ways - but mainly shows Mbeumo is on holiday and no deal around him is likely to be done in the near future.

United are looking to beef up their forward line, and have been linked with a number of centre forwards, although Rasmus Hojlund said on international duty recently that he wants to stay with the Old Trafford club.

Simon Stone
Chief football news reporter

Image source, Getty Images

The Class of 92 and co-owner Peter Lim are looking for strategic investment into Hotel Football.

The hotel, situated barely 50 yards from Old Trafford, has become a popular matchday venue for Manchester United fans since it opened in March 2015.

Lim owns 75% of the hotel, with the Class of 92 having the remaining 25%.

Hotel Football's latest accounts show it made a loss of £601,000 to 31 December 2023, although it generated a healthy operating profit of £590,430 and recorded a 21% growth in revenues.

The investment is required for improvements to the cafe area, bedrooms and corridors. The search is in its very early stages, with sources confirming privately the ownership is open minded about the size and type of investment and whether it would result in a partial sale of the company.

It is being stressed the move is completely different to the backdrop that led to a new ownership group, which includes former United stars David Beckham and Gary Neville, that took over at League Two Salford City last month.

Unlike Salford, Hotel Football does not require investment to help with day-to-day running costs. And, while he decided to pull out of Salford, Lim is happy to retain a significant interest in Hotel Football if negotiations allow.

The transfer window is open again for summer business to be conducted.

Clubs can now strike deals until the deadline at 19:00 BST on 1 September.

So if you can sell one player, who is it? And if you can buy one player only, who gets the nod?

Give us reasons for your choice but remember, in this instance it's a strict one player leaving and one coming in.

Send your selections here

Sami Mokbel
Senior football correspondent

Eight years on from his debut and Angel Gomes will never forget his Manchester United roots.

Now capped by England and set for a move to Marseille, he remains a player firmly on the rise.

Despite leaving Old Trafford for Lille five years ago, Gomes says he still owes a lot to his football education in Manchester.

"From the moment you step into the place, the coaches are telling you about the history of the club," explains Gomes.

"The Busby Babes, they show you pictures of George Best and Bobby Charlton. The culture is set early.

"You know everything about the club and what it represents. It's just something that you carry."

After limited first team chances, Gomes left for France in 2020 and has gone on to establish himself as a top midfielder.

And whilst he is aware of the significance of playing for Manchester United, he feels several factors can impact a players success at Old Trafford.

"Players may have been intimidated or not really know about the weight [of the shirt], what it carries and what it takes.

"But ultimately, sometimes, it's down to environment, timing and having the right things in place to help you.

"Sometimes it's not as black and white as they failed or they've not held their own there because of the weight of the shirt."

Read more from the interview here