Erik ten Hag has named his first starting line-up as Manchester United manager, leaving Cristiano Ronaldo out of the starting XI for this afternoon's Premier League opener against Brighton & Hove Albion at Old Trafford, kick-off 2pm.
United, who were thrashed 4-0 by the Seagulls in their most recent meeting back in May, will be determined to make a winning start to the campaign and kick the Ten Hag era off in style. The Reds enjoyed a relatively encouraging pre-season, winning three of their six friendlies.
They concluded their pre-season preparations with a 1-1 draw at home to Rayo Vallecano last Sunday, as Ten Hag fielded a much-changed team, mainly featuring players who had not featured as much as they would have hoped for in Thailand and Australia. The Dutchman made it his mission over pre-season to hand out as many opportunities as possible to almost every member of his squad.
