MATCH PREVIEW: UNITED V SOUTHAMPTON

How can I follow the game? United’s first home game of 2016/17 kicks off at 20:00 BST on Friday and will be broadcast live in the UK on Sky Sports. MUTV’s live matchday programme begins at 19:00 BST and subscribers can watch the game in full at 18:00 BST on Sunday. You can also keep up with all the action as it happens via ManUtd.com's live match blog and by following our official Twitter account @ManUtd.

Tell me more… After 94 days away, Premier League football returns to Old Trafford as Jose Mourinho’s men look to build on the opening-weekend win at Bournemouth with victory over Southampton, who were held at home by Watford in their first game of the season. Mourinho took plenty of positives from his side’s 3-1 triumph at the Vitality Stadium and, in the first Friday night encounter of the new campaign, the Reds will aim to beat the Saints at home for the first time since January 2013.

Will Paul Pogba be involved? That’s the big question and Mourinho may well keep his cards close to his chest as he plots the introduction of his world-record signing. In other team news, Jesse Lingard may return after missing the win over Bournemouth with an apparent knock picked up in the Community Shield, while Chris Smalling is available again after suspension. Southampton will be without Ryan Bertrand (knee) but the Reds are set to face three of their summer signings – Nathan Redmond, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Jeremy Pied.

What are the players saying about the game? "Southampton were sixth last season and I’m sure they will try to finish this one in a better place. It’s the first official game at Old Trafford this season so I don’t need to tell you how important it is for us to play a nice game, in return for the excitement we see in our fans now that a new football year is on." – Juan Mata

And the opposition? "We know it will be really tough because Man United are much stronger than last year, but we will give our best to get a good result." – Dusan Tadic

When did we last face them? In January, Saints claimed a second successive 1-0 win at Old Trafford, thanks to a late header from debutant Charlie Austin. Earlier in the season, Anthony Martial’s brace – in only his second league appearance for United – helped secure an entertaining 3-2 triumph at St Mary’s.

Who are their star men? Like Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Nathan Redmond scored on his Premier League debut at the weekend, bagging a well-taken goal from a corner to rescue a point against Watford. The speedy England Under-21s attacker joined from Norwich City for a fee believed to be around £10million. Saints also have two Euro 2016 winners in their ranks, in the shape of Portugal defenders Jose Fonte and Cedric Soares.

Haven’t I seen their new manager before? You might have. Claude Puel was in charge of Lille when Ryan Giggs scored a hotly-contested quick free-kick for United in a Champions League match in February 2007, after which the Frenchman appeared to urge his players to leave the pitch in protest, though the game continued after a short delay. The 54-year-old, who succeeded Everton-bound Ronald Koeman at Saints in June, has also had managerial spells at Monaco (where he had played for 17 years as a midfielder), Lyon and, most recently, Nice.

Anything else I should know? United have previously played 44 times on a Friday, including two games last season – the 1-0 league win away at Aston Villa and the 3-1 FA Cup victory at Derby County.

What are the other fixtures this weekend? The rest of the Premier League programme reads:

Saturday 20 August (15:00 BST unless stated)
Stoke City v Manchester City, 12:30
Burnley v Liverpool
Swansea City v Hull City
Tottenham Hotspur v Crystal Palace
Watford v Chelsea
West Bromwich Albion v Everton
Leicester City v Arsenal, 17:30 

Sunday 21 August
Sunderland v Middlesbrough, 13:30 BST
West Ham United v Bournemouth, 16:00 BST

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