Manchester United kick off their Premier League campaign against Leeds United exactly a month today but there’s still plenty to be resolved before then.
United’s pre-season is currently underway, with returning loanees, academy players, and new additions all on show at Carrington.
Several of the stars who played at the European Championships and Copa America are taking a well-earned break.
There could also be a host of fresh faces landing in Manchester before the campaign kicks off, as United are still making moves in the transfer market.
Along with speculation over signings, here are five questions that need answering by the time Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side host Leeds at Old Trafford on the 14th August:
Goalkeeper situation
One of the ongoing sagas of last season was who Solskjaer should select as his first-choice goalkeeper.
David de Gea and Dean Henderson chopped and changed during the term, both having a decent run in the team to prove their worth.
De Gea played United’s final game of the term- the Europa League final defeat to Villarreal- although Henderson started the last domestic game versus Wolves.
Solskjaer needs to settle on one ‘keeper if he is to give his defence some stability.
Harry Maguire’s partner
Harry Maguire will return to Manchester as a national hero, thanks to his performances at the Euros.
He was named in UEFA’s team of the tournament and converted his penalty in the final shootout loss to Italy.
Injuries aside, there is no doubt United’s skipper will face Leeds.
But who will feature alongside him at centre-back?
Victor Lindelof was Maguire’s main partner in 2020/21, although Raphael Varane is high on the hierarchy’s wish list.
Secure the French defender before the window closes and Solskjaer will have a formidable centre-half combination.
Jadon Sancho
Even if United do not get Varane over the line, they’ve already secured their number one priority deal this summer.
Jadon Sancho finally confirmed he would be joining the Red Devils from Borussia Dortmund for £73m.
After all the hype and expectation, fans now want to see him in action wearing the red jersey.
They also would like to know how Solskjaer plans to use the silky wide man.
Will he be played off the right or the left? And what will that mean for Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial, Paul Pogba, and Mason Greenwood?
Fitting in the forwards
Which leads quite nicely to the next question: how will United accommodate all their forwards?
4-2-3-1 was Solskjaer’s preferred system last year, but he might need to tweak this following Sancho’s arrival.
Pogba or Rashford typically played off the left, whilst Greenwood cut in from the right.
Sancho will inevitably take up one of these slots, meaning one creative force is set to miss out.
Rashford’s shoulder injury means he likely won’t be fit for the Leeds fixture.
This isn’t even taking into consideration Edison Cavani or Bruno Fernandes.
Fernandes fitness
On the topic of Fernandes, there will be concerns about which of the Portuguese maestro will walk out on the Old Trafford turf in 31 days’ time.
The 26-year-old’s form and influence certainly took a dip towards the tail end of last season.
He can hardly be blamed for a perceived burn-out.
According to a report from the CIES Football Observatory, Fernandes had played more minutes since lockdown than any Euro 2020 participant.
Having also competed at the tournament with his country, the midfielder will have very little time to rest before he returns to Carrington.
Can he gather up the energy to hit the ground running, or will he still be feeding off his last reserves?
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