Rúben Amorim could be fielding a very dangerious starting XI as Manchester United face XXX on the opening day of the Premier League season.
While Manchester United are focused on the summer transfer window, Rúben Amorim is preparing his squad for the opening day of the Premier League season.
United have five fixtures prepared for Amorim’s side once their commence pre-season training in mid-July, with the first being a trip to Sweden to face old foes Leeds United at the Strawberry Arena.
They will then travel to the United States to face West Ham, Bournemouth, and Everton before welcoming David de Gea’s Fiorentina to Old Trafford, one week before the Premier League starts.
The Premier League have now confirmed that United’s opening fixture of the 2025/26 season will be a crunch clash against Arsenal, set to take place at Old Trafford on Sunday, 17 August, kicking off at 16:30 BST.
What could Amorim’s starting XI vs Arsenal look like?
For starters, the latest reports suggest that United are expecting first-choice goalkeeper André Onana to stay at the club this summer, following crunch talks held regarding the Cameroon goalkeeper.
With the defensive line not being a significant area that the club feels needs immediate transfer changes this summer, it is thought that Amorim may opt to simply keep most of his centre-back options across the summer window.
Therefore, United fans could see Amorim’s usual first-choice back three of Noussair Mazraoui, Matthijs de Ligt, and Leny Yoro line up at Old Trafford.
Meanwhile, although a new midfielder is expected to sign this summer, the head coach could opt to bed in whoever is signed as the season kicks off, and instead elect to play Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes side by side in the middle of the park.
As for the wing-backs in Amorim’s 3-4-2-1 formation, Patrick Chinazaekpere Dorgu is almost a certainty to play on the left, provided he is fit. However, with United looking to add firepower to their front line, Amad could find himself on the right flank.
This would help accommodate the “incredible” Bryan Mbeumo, whom United are looking to secure from Brentford to play as an option on the right of the club’s front three, alongside the new confirmed signing Matheus Cunha on the left.
As for the striker position, who knows? Reports suggest that both Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Højlund want to stay and fight for their place in the team, meaning either could be in the starting lineup.
But, should Amorim secure the new first-choice striker he wants, this could be Hugo Ekitike. The Eintracht Frankfurt forward has a significant price tag, but this could drop to around £60 million this summer, making the 22-year-old a more attainable target.
Amorim’s predicted starting XI vs Arsenal
Onana, Mazraoui, De Ligt, Yoro, Amad, Casemiro, Fernandes, Dorgu, Mbeumo, Ekitike, Cunha.
Make sure to follow UtdDistrict on X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok to never miss out on any of our Manchester United content. Our podcast, What the Devil?, is streamed live every Thursday at 12:30 pm (BST) on the United View YouTube channel.