Skip to main content

Manchester United and Leeds have seemingly been rivals since the dawn of time, and Wednesday will see the two clubs renew acquaintances as they both prepare for the upcoming 2019/20 season.

There hasn't been a fixture between the two sides for a while, mainly due to Leeds being stuck in the Championship, with United enjoying varying levels of success since the Peacocks' relegation from the top flight in 2004.

A pre-season friendly is the latest instalment of this fixture, the game taking place at Perth's Optus Stadium at noon on Wednesday.

derby-county-v-leeds-united-sky-bet-championship-play-off-semi-final-first-leg-5d2c4e4e68d6093a8b000001.jpg

Here's 90min's preview for this pre-season derby.

Where to Watch

When Is Kick Off?                                          

Wednesday 17 July                                          

What Time Is Kick Off?

12:00 (BST)

Where Is It played?

Optus Stadium, Perth

TV Channel/Live Stream?

MUTV or LUTV

Referee?

TBC

Team News


Luke Shaw trained on Monday morning, which is positive news for the Red Devils after he limped off during the 2-0 win over Perth. Other than that, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer should have a fully fit squad available to him.

Solskjaer used 23 players during the game against Perth, so expect him to make plenty of changes during this match.

Marcelo Bielsa has named 16 players for the trip to Australia, with half his squad making the journey and the rest staying in England to work on their fitness.

Among those in the squad are former Real Madrid goalkeeper Kika Casilla, forwards Patrick Bamford and Kemar Roofe and ex-Swansea star Pablo Hernandez.

Predicted Lineups

Manchester United

De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Tuanzebe, Bailly, Shaw; McTominay, Pogba; James, Mata, Greenwood; Martial.

Leeds United

Casilla; Dallas, Berardi, Cooper, Douglas; Phillips, Forshaw; Bogusz, Hernandez, Harrison; Roofe.

Head to Head Record

The head to head stakes are more even than you'd expect, but United still have a comfortable advantage. They've have won 47 of the 109 clashes, with Leeds triumphing in 27 games and 35 ending in draws.

manchester-united-s-english-forward-mich-5d2cbc3068d6095163000019.jpg

The last time the two sides faced off came in a 2011 League Cup third round game at Elland Road, when Michael Owen scored twice with Ryan Giggs also getting himself a strike.

Recent Form

Leeds are recovering from their Championship play-off semi final defeat against Derby at the tail end of last season and are looking to go one step further and earn promotion to the Premier League this time round.

They've played two pre-season games so far - beating York City 5-0 on 10 July before triumphing over Guiseley 2-1 a day later.

perth-glory-v-manchester-united-5d2cbad53f83cf6795000001.jpg

United, on the other hand, will be looking to break into the top four once the season gets up and running. Their clash with Perth Glory in their pre-season opener saw them record a 2-0 win, Marcus Rashford and James Garner both scoring.

Here's how each side has fared in their last five games.

Manchester United

Leeds United

Perth Glory 0-2 Manchester United (13/7)

Guiseley 1-2 Leeds United (11/7)

Manchester United 0-2 Cardiff (12/5)

York City 0-5 Leeds United (10/7)

Huddersfield 1-1 Manchester United (5/5)

Leeds United 2-4 Derby County (15/5)

Manchester United 1-1 Chelsea (28/4)

Derby County 0-1 Leeds United (11/5)

Manchester United 0-2 Manchester City (24/4)

Ipswich Town 3-2 Leeds United (5/5)

Prediction

Overall, United would be expected to win this one but pre-season can throw up some unusual results from time to time: just look at Accrington Stanley's 2-0 win over Marseille earlier in July.

Either way, this is a good test for both sides ahead of the new campaign, as both look to challenge at the top of their respective leagues.

As friendlies go this could well be one of the least affectionate in the fixture's history. There should be a large crowd and both sets of players will be bang up for it.

Prediction: Manchester United 3-1 Leeds United