Man Utd vs Wolves preview, team news, tickets & prediction

Manchester United kick-off the new Premier League season with a home clash against Wolves at Old Trafford on Monday night.

Erik ten Hag enjoyed an encouraging debut campaign in England after arriving from Ajax last summer. The Dutchman ended United’s trophy drought after guiding them to Carabao Cup success last season and he almost did the domestic cup double after narrowly losing to Man City in the FA Cup final back in May.

Man Utd also achieved their main goal of finishing in the top four to qualify for the Champions League. After a solid season, they ended up finishing third – just ahead of Newcastle United. However, they still ended up nine points adrift of second-placed Arsenal and 14 off winners Manchester City so ten Hag will be looking to close the gap at the top this season and make United genuine title challengers again.

The Manchester United owners have backed ten Hag in the transfer market this summer as they’ve brought in three big-money signings so far. After letting David de Gea depart at the end of his contract, United have solved their goalkeeping issues after signing Andre Onana from Inter Milan. The Cameroonian international should prove to be an excellent fit into ten Hag’s possession-based style of play and is likely to be an upgrade on de Gea.

Mason Mount has also arrived from Chelsea and the England international will be a valuable addition to the squad. Mount is a great talent and should bolster United’s midfield options to complement the likes of Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes. Perhaps the biggest signing was the £72m deal to sign striker Rasmu Hojlund from Atalanta. Ten Hag desperately needed a new striker to lead the line in his new-look team, and Man Utd have bought one of the most exciting young forwards in Europe. If Hojlund settles in England, he should prove to be an excellent addition to the squad.

Further incomings could arrive before the end of the month once United offload some of their deadwood. The likes of Harry Maguire, Fred, Donny van de Beek and Scott McTominay could all depart Old Trafford over the coming weeks to make room for additional signings as ten Hag continues to overhaul his squad.

Manchester United had a mixed time of things during pre-season. They secured solid wins over Arsenal, Lyon and Lens but lost to Wrexham, Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund while drawing with Athletic Club last time out, so ten Hag will be hoping for an improved display when they take on Wolves on Monday night.

Wolves head to Old Trafford in disarray as manager Julen Lopetegui left his role earlier this week on the eve of the new campaign. Gary O’Neil has come in as his replacement but he’s not had long to prepare his new squad for the trip to United. There will be no expectation for O’Neil to get a result against Man Utd so this should be a good time to play Wolves, but it could be a long season for the visitors with many tipping them for the drop this season.

Team news

Ten Hag has a few injury concerns to deal with heading into the new season. New striker Rasus Hojlund arrived nursing a back injury and isn’t going to be fit on Monday night. The Danish forward could miss the opening few games of the season and ten Hag has suggested the club don’t want to rush the youngster back too soon.

United’s attacking options are further limited by the news that Anthony Martial is ruled out with a hamstring injury that hampered him in pre-season. The Frenchman is being assessed on a daily basis but the visit of Wolves will come too soon for him.

Tyrell Malacia is also set to miss out on Monday as the full-back is recovering from a muscle injury. Goalkeeper Dean Henderson is expected to seal a move away from United this summer but he’s currently on the sidelines with a thigh problem so isn’t in contention to be in the squad on Monday night. Fellow goalkeeper Tom Heaton is also ruled out due to a calf problem.

Highly-rated winger Amad Traore is also on the treatment table as he’s nursing a knee injury that he picked up late last month. Kobbie Mainoo is another absentee as the young midfielder is ruled out with an ankle injury that he sustained in pre-season.

Andre Onana is set to make his competitive debut following his £47m move from Inter Milan this summer. The goalkeeper has been brought in as a replacement for David de Gea, who left Man Utd following the expiration of his contract after 11 years at the club.

Mount is also set to make his debut for United after arriving from Chelsea this summer. The England international should line-up in midfield alongside Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes. Marcus Rashford is set to start up front in the absence of Martial and Hojlund.

As for Wolves, O’Neil has a fully fit squad to choose from as there are currently no injury concerns to deal with. It will be interesting to see how O’Neil lines-up his side but he’ll be thrown into the deep end with a daunting trip to Old Trafford for his first game in charge.

Tickets

Expectations are high at Old Trafford ahead of the new season and demand for Man Utd tickets is as high as ever. The official allocation via club websites has sold out but fans can still buy tickets on Seatsnet if they want to watch the game in person.

For those who can’t get a hold of a ticket, you can still follow all the action on Sky Sports Main Event on Monday night. Subscribers to Sky Sports can watch the game as it happens via their Sky box or on the Sky Go app.

Prediction

Man Utd have won four of the last five meetings between the two sides and they should be confident of extending that run on Monday. United probably couldn’t have asked for a better opening game to the new season and they’ll be heavy favourites to collect all three points at Old Trafford.

Wolves have just brought in a new manager who hasn’t had enough time to fully prepare his team ahead of this game, so we can’t expect miracles straight away. O’Neil will probably set Wolves up to be hard to beat, but Man Utd should still have too much quality so we’re predicting a routine win for the hosts. Man Utd 2-0 Wolves