The Red Devils conclude what has been a fraught pre-season as they take on German champions in their last friendly before the Premier League season
Manchester United and Bayern Munich conclude their pre-season preparations on Sunday when they face off against each other at the Allianz Arena.
Both sides were involved in the International Champions Cup in the United States, with the Red Devils faring slightly better than the Bavarians, and they will be eager to head into competitive action on a high note.
United defeated AC Milan and Real Madrid in the pre-season tournament but lost to Liverpool, while Bayern began with a victory over Paris Saint-Germain before losing to Juventus and Manchester City.
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Jose Mourinho’s men have a Premier League opener against Leicester to come five days after the Bayern match and the Bundesliga champions raise the curtain on the German season next week against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Super Cup.
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US) the game will be not be shown live on television, nor will it be available to stream live online.
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game can be watched live on TV on United’s in-house channel MUTV and it can also be streamed live online using the MUTV app or internet service.
Squads & Team News
Bayern will be without Arturo Vidal, who recently ended a three-year spell at the club to join Barcelona. Niko Kovac has welcomed the likes of James Rodriguez and Manuel Neuer back to the squad and should have a full panel to choose from for the game.
Potential Bayern Munich XI: Neuer; Rafinha, Alaba, Hummels, Boateng; Martinez, Thiago, Goretzka, Robben, Coman; Wagner.
Mourinho worked with a skeletal squad this pre-season and that has not changed for the trip to Munich. Anthony Martial’s absence from the panel continues, while Nemanja Matic, Antonio Valencia and Diogo Dalot remain sidelined with injuries. The likes of Romelu Lukaku, Marouane Fellaini, Paul Pogba have returned to training but are expected to sit out the game in Germany.
Potential Man Utd XI: De Gea; Darmian, Bailly, Smalling, Shaw; Fred, Herrera, Mata, McTominay, A. Pereira; Sanchez.
Betting & Match Odds
Home side Bayern Munich are favourites, according to dabblebet, at odds of 8/15. Man United, meanwhile, can be backed to win at 7/2 and a draw is available at 3/1.
Click here to see all of dabblebet’s offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more.
Match Preview
The game against Bayern Munich in Germany is the last chance for Mourinho to fine-tune his plans ahead of the maiden match of the 2018-19 Premier League campaign, which sees the Red Devils face Leicester.
It has been a fraught pre-season for the Old Trafford club, with Mourinho bemoaning the fact that he has not been able to work with the bulk of his senior squad as well as expressing frustration at the lack of transfer activity, while Anthony Martial looks to have moved closer to an exit after exchanging barbs with his boss over taking time off to attend the birth of his child.
Fears that the Portuguese is on course to fulfil the infamous ‘third season curse’ that blighted his previous tenures at Chelsea and Real Madrid have intensified as a result and it will be interesting to see how the players respond to the tension that appears to have arisen.
Bayern, meanwhile, are embarking into a new era, with recently instated head coach Kovac set to lead the team out at the Allianz Arena for the first time since taking the reins from Jupp Heynckes.
A number of stars who featured at the World Cup in Russia have rejoined the squad, while new signing Leon Goretzka could be set to make his first appearance for the Bavarian club since joining from Schalke.