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Who: Manchester United vs Arsenal
What: English Premier League
Where: Old Trafford, Manchester, United Kingdom
When: Sunday, August 16 astatine 4:30pm (15:30 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll person each the build-up connected Al Jazeera Sport from 4:30pm (15:30 GMT) successful beforehand of our unrecorded substance commentary stream.
Arsenal look an contiguous trial of their Premier League rubric credentials against a revamped Manchester United.
Al Jazeera Sport takes a person look astatine the game.
How does the play signifier up for Arsenal?
Mikel Arteta has challenged Arsenal to support digging for gold.
The Gunners person finished arsenic Premier League runners-up for the past 3 seasons, sparking disapproval of their nonaccomplishment to get implicit the enactment successful the rubric race.
Arsenal blew important leads erstwhile Manchester City pipped them to the trophy successful 2023 and 2024, earlier Liverpool near the injury-plagued northbound Londoners trailing successful their aftermath past season.
Arsenal’s rubric frustrations are mounting, with fans questioning whether Arteta is the close antheral to extremity their drought aft winning lone the 2020 FA Cup since helium took complaint successful December 2019.
But the Gunners showed their imaginable past season, with a tally to the Champions League semifinals that ended with a constrictive decision against eventual winners Paris Saint-Germain.
And, buoyed by a big of caller signings worthy much than 180 cardinal pounds ($244 million) successful total, Arteta is convinced they tin yet get their hands connected the Premier League silverware this season.
“You support digging, digging, digging, and you person to beryllium digging due to the fact that 1 time the golden is going to beryllium there,” helium told reporters connected Friday.
“For 3 seasons, we’ve had much points than [nearly] immoderate different squad successful this league, which is incredible.
“You person the consistency, but present we person to bash it successful a season, to extremity with much points than immoderate different team.
“That’s the objective. When I’ve been taught, erstwhile I’ve been educated, that’s it.”
Hampered by injuries to Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz astatine assorted stages past season, Arsenal lacked a cutting borderline and were held to 14 draws compared with Liverpool’s nine.
That was a important borderline arsenic Arsenal finished 10 points down the champions.
Arsenal’s Viktor Gyokeres heads astatine extremity during a preseason affable against Athletic Bilbao [Matthew Childs/Reuters]Who did Arsenal motion this summer?
In an effort to insulate Arsenal against different fitness-related collapse, Arteta has brought successful Sporting Lisbon striker Viktor Gyokeres, Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi, Chelsea winger Noni Madueke and Brentford midfielder Christian Norgaard.
After bemoaning Arsenal’s nonaccomplishment to motion Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins arsenic Liverpool pulled distant during the January window, the Spaniard is simply a acold much upbeat fig connected the eve of the caller season.
“I deliberation we person large versatility, precise antithetic qualities successful narration to the opposition, truthful we are precise blessed with that,” helium said.
Arteta said that “too many” teams person a morganatic changeable astatine winning the Premier League for his liking, immoderate helium adjacent suspects volition “surprise everybody”.
Whether that was a hint that United, who suffered their worst play since 1973-74 past term, could look arsenic contenders aft their summertime spending spree remains to beryllium seen.
Arsenal were linked with a determination for United’s caller striker Benjamin Sesko earlier deciding to stake connected Gyokeres for a interest that could emergence to 66 cardinal pounds ($89.5m).
The Swede netted 97 times successful 102 games successful 2 years astatine Sporting, overmuch of which came nether United’s existent manager, Ruben Amorim.
Manchester United’s Bryan Mbeumo moved from Brentford successful the summertime transportation model [Andrew Boyers/Reuters]How is the play shaping up for Man Utd?
Instead of being reunited with Gyokeres, Amorim overhauled his onslaught with the signings of Leipzig’s Sesko, Brentford winger Bryan Mbeumo and Wolves guardant Matheus Cunha astatine a combined outgo of much than 200 cardinal pounds ($271m).
United, who person not won the rubric since 2013, had to walk large to erase the stench of their putrid campaign.
Amorim’s squad finished a dismal 15th successful the top-flight, and squandered a accidental to suffice for the Champions League with a toothless 1-0 decision against chap underachievers Tottenham successful the Europa League final.
The unit is connected Amorim, who replaced the sacked Erik 10 Hag successful November, to present large improvements successful his 2nd season.
Amorim knows Sesko volition beryllium cardinal to that people and believes the 22-year-old Slovenian is acceptable to emergence to the challenge.
“I don’t request to archer Ben, ‘Ben, this is Manchester United, a batch of pressure. Every crippled is similar bash oregon die’,” Amorim said.
“He is ever reasoning astir football. He’s truly obsessed astir that.”
Head-to-head
This is the 244th gathering betwixt the clubs, with United winning 99 of those games and Arsenal winning 89.
The past 2 meetings ended successful 1-1 draws, though 1 of those was successful the FA Cup with United advancing connected penalties.
The Red Devils person not beaten the Gunners since December 2022, a 3-1 location triumph pb by a Marcus Rashford double.
The Gunners person won 4 of the six pursuing meetings.
Manchester United squad news
Defenders Lisandro Martinez (knee) and Noussair Mazraoui (hamstring) are some wounded absentees for United.
Joshua Zirkzee and Andre Onana have, however, some recovered from knocks and are disposable for selection.
Arsenal squad news
Arteta has said that the caller signings, Gyokeres and Zubimendi, are some “fit to play”.
Leandro Trossard has had a groin occupation but is expected to retrieve successful clip for selection. Gabriel Jesus remains a semipermanent absentee with an ACL injury, but otherwise, Arteta has a afloat squad to take from.
Manchester United predicted starting lineup
Onana; Yoro, Maguire, Shaw; Dalot, Casemiro, Fernandes, Dorgu; Mbeumo, Cunha; Sesko
Arsenal predicted starting lineup
Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly; Odegaard, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Gyokeres, Martinelli
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