Rúben Amorim and Mikel Arteta both have mostly fit squads to choose from as Manchester United host Arsenal at Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon.
After five warm-up games in Sweden, the United States, and at Old Trafford, Rúben Amorim’s Manchester United are ready to get their 2025/26 Premier League season underway.
The Reds picked up wins over West Ham and Bournemouth, while draws against Leeds United, Everton, and Fiorentina kept their unbeaten record intact. A penalty shootout success against the Italian side also secured the Snapdragon Cup.
Now, all eyes turn to Sunday, 17 August, when Arsenal visit Old Trafford in the standout fixture of the opening weekend.
The clash is set to bring competitive debuts for a number of players, with Benjamin Šeško, Matheus Cunha, and Bryan Mbeumo in line for United, while Viktor Gyökeres, Martin Zubimendi, and Noni Madueke are expected to feature for Mikel Arteta’s team.
Latest United and Arsenal injury news
Last season, any momentum Amorim built was often hindered by injury problems to key players, including Lisandro Martínez, Kobbie Mainoo, and Joshua Zirkzee.
The latter has missed pre-season with an injury, but is in contention to play against Arsenal. Amorim has confirmed that goalkeeper André Onana is also available to play, but that Noussair Mazraoui and Martínez are both still too far away.
“Nous and Licha are out,” Amorim confirmed on Friday afternoon. “They cannot play in this game. Josh recovered, André recovered, they are options for this game, we will see.”
Similarly, Arteta has confirmed on Friday that Leandro Trossard and Zubimendi should be fit for the weekend. “Yeah, I think [Trossard is] much better,” the Spaniard said. “I think he will be able to train again tomorrow, and if that’s the case, he will be fit.”
Šeško will be able to start vs Arsenal
With United announcing the signing of striker Šeško last week, there has been considerable debate surrounding whether the Slovenian will make his debut for his new club from the start or if he will be introduced from the bench.
“I think he has great potential. In everything he does,” Amorim said of the 22-year-old. “He can play different types of football.
“He’s going to feel that the Premier League is really aggressive, he’s going to learn, but he has a great potential and I can see Ben being a striker for Manchester United for a lot of years. That’s why we paid so much money to have a striker that will have his history in our club.”
“When asked whether Šeško is fit to start Amorim replied, “Of course. We didn’t have a lot of time, but he’s ready. First of all, physically, he’s ready. That is a big component in our league.
“Then, he’s really smart. Every detail he asks, he’s a guy that is always thinking. He spends all afternoon here working on his fitness, so he’s ready to play, we will see if he’s going to start.”
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