Club Friendly: Manchester United are Back to Square One

Manchester United vs Leeds United

After a one-month hiatus, Manchester United will open their preseason series against Premier League clubs, starting with a Club Friendly against Leeds United at the Friends Arena in Solna, Sweden, this Saturday.

The Red Devils are back to square one after a horrendous 15th-place run in the English top-flight standings last term, which was their worst-ever finish. Ruben Amorim will look to right the ship, despite the club’s underwhelming summer transfer window thus far, by building some momentum this preseason.

On the other hand, Leeds United are ecstatic to be back in the Premier League after a two-season hiatus. Daniel Farke’s men are having a productive summer transfer window (in contrast with Manchester United), and the Whites will likely use the preseason to gauge how they can stack up among England’s finest teams.

The SBOTOP Club Friendly 2025 odds expect Manchester United to win, but they don’t have a large margin for error.

Talking Points

Onana unavailable for Manchester United

Fans will finally get to see Matheus Cunha and Diego Leon suiting up for Manchester United for the first time this weekend, and for sure, they will provide them with a healthy dose of Club Friendly 2025 highlights. Other players such as Bruno Fernandes, Joshua Zirkzee, Rasmus Hojlund, and Amad Diallo will also do the same. Diogo Dalot will wear No. 2 on his jersey for the first time, and Lisandro Martinez is back at full strength after his leg injury.

However, the audience won’t get to see Andre Onana in action, as the Cameroonian goalkeeper recently sustained a hamstring injury. Amorim expects Onana to be out for much of the preseason, so he’ll choose between Altay Bayindir and Tom Heaton to be the man between the sticks. The manager could also play youngsters like Elyh Harrison, Radek Vitek, or Dermot Mee.

Onana has been linked with a move away from Old Trafford this season, as Manchester United were named as a possible transfer destination for Emiliano Martinez, who just left Aston Villa. However, no move between the two parties is imminent, so Onana remains the team’s first-choice.

Another thing to watch for Manchester United’s preseason is how Kobbie Mainoo, Alejandro Garnacho, Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford, Antony, and Tyrell Malacia fit into the team’s plans. Mainoo has been an odd fit to Amorim’s tactics thus far, while Garnacho, Sancho, Antony, and Malacia are on the team’s sell list this summer.

Leeds United could feature the new recruits

Leeds United have been busy in the transfer market, acquiring the likes of Jaka Bijol, Gabriel Gudmundsson, Sebastiaan Bournauw, and Felix Nmecha, and they could feature against Manchester United. The Whites also recruited Sean Longstaff from Newcastle United, though Saturday could come too early for his Leeds United debut. Jack Harrison will also get his chance after two straight years on loan at Everton.

Joel Piroe and Willy Gnonto will take charge of the scoring for Leeds United, with Largie Ramazani and Patrick Bamford as their off-the-bench options. Ilia Gruev and Ao Tanaka will operate in the middle of the park in a double pivot, while Joe Rodon and Ethan Ampadu will link up again at centre-half.

History

As mentioned, Manchester United are coming off their worst Premier League finish following their 15th-place run in the English top-flight standings with only 42 points. This means that the Red Devils won’t play in Europe for the first time in a long while, although this could be a blessing in disguise for Ruben Amorim and co. schedule-wise.

Meanwhile, Leeds United are back in the Premier League after they were relegated at the end of the 2022-23 campaign. After losing to Southampton in the play-off last year, the Whites secured their English top-flight return after finishing at the top of the EFL Championship table in 2024-25 with 100 points.

Manchester United and Leeds United have one of the biggest rivalries in English football, called the Roses rivalry. Since 1923, these two teams have faced off in 113 matches, with the Red Devils notching 50 wins and the Whites registering 37 wins and 26 draws.

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This message was edited by SBOTOP on 18-Jul-2025 at 5:14 PM

Club Friendly: Will Sevilla be Too Hot for the Black Cats?

Sevilla vs Sunderland

Premier League newcomers Sunderland are in warm-weather training in preparation for their return to the English top-flight, and the Club Friendly between Sevilla and Sunderland is the first chance for the Black Cats to see how they compare in the world of elite football.

They could hardly have picked a hotter place to test themselves as they head to the Algarve in Portugal, where they will play a double header, firstly against La Liga side Sevilla and then against Portuguese giants Sporting Lisbon.

The Algarve is a popular holiday destination for golfers and beach lovers, but Sevilla and Sunderland are there to put in some hard work, and both have plenty on their plates before the new campaign begins.

Talking Points

Can Almeyda sort Seville?

After a 17^th placed finish in the Primera Division last term, Sevilla moved to make yet another change in the dugout. And in the biggest Club Friendly 2025 news to emerge from Andalucia this summer, they appointed Argentine manager Matias Almeyda following the departure of Xavier Garcia. In his last role at AEK Athens, he led the Greek side to its first domestic league and cup double since 1978, and Sevilla fans hope he can restore some pride to their team.

Remarkably, Almeyda is the club’s eighth manager in three seasons, which reflects the turmoil in Seville, with the memory of five Europa League triumphs in a sparkling decade up to 2023 beginning to seem distant. It appears the board wants to instill some passion and discipline into the squad with this appointment.

Almeyda’s approach is said to be heavily influenced by his former manager and countryman Marcelo Bielsa, with a high-intensity, attacking style of play, and he also incorporates a Japanese Samurai code of conduct in his coaching, with a heavy emphasis on courage, respect, honesty, duty, and loyalty.

As a player, Almeyda was a tenacious defensive midfielder, a terrier with stamina and a superb work-rate and tough tackling, earning him the nickname “The Little Tractor”. And his new bosses hope he can instill those qualities in his new team.

Two players are back from loan spells. Striker Rafa Mir is back from Valencia and winger Adnan Januzaj has returned from Las Palmas, and it will be interesting to see how quickly Almeyda can get a tune out of these and others.

Bellingham departure prompts a Sunderland spending spree

As my SBOTOP colleague Jordan writes, Sunderland were on a bad run before they beat Sheffield United in the play-off final, but they pulled off the win, which stunned the Blades, who had expected to earn automatic promotion until they too suffered a run of losses to leave Leeds United and Burnley to head off into the distance.

It was an unexpected promotion for the Black Cats, but they started the season with a superb run of wins, and that was enough to carry them through to the play-offs. Under head coach Regie Le Bris, Sunderland played attractive, fast-passing football. But much of the play went through Jobe Bellingham, who starred for Borussia Dortmund at the Club World Cup after switching to the Bundesliga side immediately after the end of the season, following in the footsteps of his older brother, Jude.

After guiding the team to an impressive fourth-placed finish, Le Bris has been backed by his board of directors who have sanctioned a €100 million spending spree, which they hope will help their manager defy the odds that predict the Black Cats to finish bottom.

21-year-old midfielder Habib Diarra has arrived in a £30 million switch from Strasbourg, while Ivorian winger Simon Adingra has moved from Brighton for £20 million, the same as the fee to make another winger,

Enzo Le Fe’s loan move from Roma is permanent. The 25-year-old played 15 games for the Black Cats following his arrival in January, scoring one goal, and the mandatory option to buy at £20 million was triggered on promotion.

Defensive midfielder Noah Sadiki has arrived in a £17.5 million move from Union Saint-Gilloise, while another young winger, Chemsdine Talbi, has been transferred from another Belgian side Club Brugge for a cool £19 million. Except for Adingra, there is no Premier League experience among this young group, and that will be a huge challenge for Le Bris when he starts life in the toughest league in the world.

The Black Cats had a run out last week against National League North side South Shields, winning 4-0 as Wilson Isidor, another star of Sunderland’s 2024-25 promotion, opened the scoring. And the Club Friendly 2025 odds know it’s on to a tougher test for Sunderland in a hotter country, where Le Bris will learn a whole lot more.

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This message was edited by SBOTOP on 18-Jul-2025 at 5:16 PM

Club Friendly: Arsenal and Milan on an Eastern Adventure

Arsenal vs AC Milan

The Singapore Festival of Football is set to kick off this week when Club Friendly: Arsenal vs AC Milan is the fare on offer for the locals… and any lucky travelling fans.

It’s the second of the Singaporean football jamborees and to have the giants of European football in the city-state is a great way for Arsenal and AC Milan to spread their commercial appeal as well as upping their match-fitness levels in preparation for the new domestic campaigns.

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal are hoping to add to their 13 Premier League titles, after coming so close in recent years, while Massimiliano Allegri’s reign as AC Milan manager starts with high expectations. I Rossoneri are 19-times Scudetto winners and, after an eighth-place finish last term, the Serie A betting odds predict a top four place and maybe more, as they will have quieter fixture lists than their competitors. 

Gunners’ search for a striker goes on

Here at SBOTOP we’ve followed Arsenal’s search for a striker for almost 12 months now and, while the Gunners do seem to be getting closer they still haven’t got a proven goal scorer through the door. Sporting Lisbon striker Victor Gyokeres has been the main target during this transfer window, but there appears to be a risk of that deal collapsing, despite the Swede’s keenness to head to North London.

The latest Premier League news suggests the deal is still close, but there is work to do to iron out differences in the two clubs’ expectations around add-ons, both are looking at a figure of around 10m Euros but with differing structures. The fee is £55m but the add-ons are an important aspect and the Gunners will be keen to get it sorted, with Manchester United also circling. Arsenal have spread their search and have been watching 20 year old Mainz 05 striker Nelson Weiper, a strong and powerful figure who, at 6ft 3in, would be able to cope with the rigours of Premier League football.

Arsenal have already made some summer purchases, bringing in Martin Zubimendi to support the excellent Declan Rice in the centre of midfield, while winger Noni Madueke has signed from Chelsea; though the 22-year old has been left at home since his arrival at the Emirates having starred for Chelsea in the Club World Cup.

This is a squad dripping with talent and Gunners fans will hope that Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz can stay fit and firing this summer, while a 20 goals a man striker remains the priority. 

Milan looking to add to Modric and Ricci

The Big Boys in Serie A are jockeying for position and the 2025/26 Scudetto race looks like becoming an exciting prospect already. The recruitment of Allegri as head coach has signalled I Rossoneri’s intent and the club has already made some astute signings. Box to box midfielder Samuele Ricci has arrived from Torino in a 23m Euros switch and, with ten Azzurri caps already he is a much admired player, technically gifted with an excellent vision and passing range. At the other end of his career, the evergreen Luka Modric has transferred in after 13 glittering campaigns at Real Madrid. The 39-year old Croat will get plenty of game time but Allegri will use him carefully. 

Milan are closing in on a deal to sign right back Pervis Estupinan from Brighton and Hove Albion and Marc Pubill from Almeria, two moves to strengthen the Rossoneri’s defensive unit and they too are in the market for a proven striker. Juventus goal-getter Dusan Vlahovic has been the subject of constant transfer speculation in recent weeks and his time at Juventus must surely be coming to an end after three years in Turin in which he has scored 43 goals in 104 appearances. The 25-year old Serb has an impressive track record with 44 goals in 98 appearances for Fiorentina before he moved to Turin in 2022. To get close to a one in two ratio in the Italian top flight is some achievement over five campaigns… and Vlahovic is yet to reach his prime. 

With 12 months left on his contract, Vlahovic will be on the move this summer you’d expect and, if so, he may well rock up at the San Siro where he would get plenty of service from the likes of Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah and Rafael Leao. But, in Italy, the big deals are rarely straight forward and that is sure to be the case with Vlahovic. Juventus are yet to receive an offer and it seems to be a game of chess between the selling and buying clubs, with the player’s wages no small issue.

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This message was edited by SBOTOP on 22-Jul-2025 at 3:38 PM