Ten Hag’s men will look to continue their unbeaten form when they face Premier League rivals Aston Villa
Manchester United got off to a flying start under new manager Erik ten Hag as he scored 11 goals in just three matches. They will be looking to continue their rich vein of form against Aston Villa in their last friendly on Australian soil.
Meanwhile, the Bordeaux and Blue Army are also heading into this game following a narrow 1-0 win against Brisbane Roar in what was their third pre-season friendly.
The game between the two Premier League teams will take place at the beautiful Optus Stadium in Burswood, Australia, and OBJECTIVE brings you all the relevant information when it comes to following the action from Down Under.
Man Utd vs Aston Villa kick off date and time
How to watch Man Utd vs Aston Villa on TV and live online
The pre-season contest will not be shown on TV in the UK, but is available to watch and stream online via MUTV and VillaTV+.
Man Utd squad and squad news
It will come as no surprise if Ten Hag showcases his strongest XI against Villa as the manager is more inclined to give his first-choice players the maximum amount of minutes together, as was evident against Crystal Palace on Tuesday.
“We have a team and as you know we don’t have much time. We have to be ready for August 7. We have experienced players, but we also wanted to give young talents a chance. I can’t not give all young players the chances they deserve because we have to build a team,” he said ahead of the clash.
The Dutch manager could stick with the top three of Jadon Sancho, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford as they have performed well in previous friendlies in the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo who has yet to join the team and wants to leave Old Trafford. .
“It’s possible. They connect really well together. I think when you see that, you’re lucky as a manager. They’re a threat, the team has weapons and we need to develop that further,” did he declare.
It remains to be seen whether Tyrell Malacia is once again preferred at left-back ahead of Luke Shaw and who gets the nod between Donny van de Beek and Scott McTominay as the two players battle for the same role.
Both James Garner and Raphael Varane missed Tuesday’s game against Crystal Palace. However, the duo have returned to training and could get some minutes against Villa.
Aston Villa team and squad news
Like United, Villa are unbeaten on their pre-season tour and could pose a tough challenge for Ten Hag’s men on Saturday. Manager Steven Gerrard wants no mistakes in his last match of the Australian tour and is looking for a solid finish.
“We’re looking forward to the match and it’s the final push of the tour. The tour has been fantastic so far and we want to finish with a bang.
“We’re a few weeks away from a really big start to the season so we have to turn the dial now. We’re going to introduce a bit more playing time for the players now because it’s the right time and they’re ready now. because they have the right volume in their legs to really push certain players,” he said.
Gerrard is impressed with Coutinho’s response and hopes his former Liverpool teammate as well as the academy players can improve their game so they can pose a threat to the top six.
“Having Phil Coutinho signed up full-time now, he feels more involved than he did as a loanee player. The academy players started. Cameron Archer’s loan move up him from We have Tim and AJ (Aaron Ramsey) just coming off an Under-19 win and you can see the confidence in them, so the team and the staff within it are bubbling really well.
“We have to believe. It’s not impossible. It’s happened before, you’ve seen it, you’ve seen Leicester’s history which was epic. But, apart from that, you see teams like West Ham , you see Wolves, we’ve seen other teams really disrupt the top six, huge clubs, and we have to take each game at a time,” he added.
The former England international will field the best possible XI, meaning Perth fans can expect Philippe Coutinho, Ollie Watkins, Danny Ings and Aaron Ramsey to be in action.
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