Premier League 2024/25: What we learned about Man Utd ...

Pre-season is officially over - so where does that leave the 20 Premier League clubs with the season now just days away? Sky Sports picks out some talking points from each team...

Arsenal are evolving - they want it more than ever

Mikel Arteta was asked if Arsenal's intense pressing shows they are ready to start the Premier League season. "It looked like that to me," he replied.

Since the Gunners came back from their United States tour at the start of August, you can see the Gunners' desire in their eyes. Off the ball, they have looked exceptional.

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In their 4-1 win over Leverkusen, Arsenal scored twice in a minute because Leandro Trossard pressed Leverkusen virtually straight away from kick-off and got the second goal. The same happened against Lyon with Declan Rice winning the ball, only this time Arsenal missed the chance for 2-0.

The Gunners are looking to kill games early as they attempt to evolve this season. They look the same - they score from set pieces and they give nothing to their opponents - but the margins to beat Manchester City are so small that near-perfection is required. Arsenal look like they want it more than ever.

An extra push could come from Riccardo Calafiori, whose physical presence in defence looks like a stylistic alternative to Oleksandr Zinchenko's passing game.

And there could be more youth products coming out of Arsenal this season, with Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri impressing at inverted left-back and attacking midfield respectively.

In order for Arsenal to go one better this season, they need to evolve once again. The early signs are bright.

Pre-season results

July 24: Arsenal 1-1 (5-4 pens) Bournemouth; July 27: Arsenal 2-1 Man Utd; July 31: Arsenal 1-2 Liverpool; August 7: Arsenal 4-1 Bayer Leverkusen; August 11: Arsenal 2-0 Lyon

Arsenal's 2024/25 fixturesRogers excitement sums up Aston Villa's strength in depth

Aston Villa played seven pre-season matches but won just one out of the final five. Defeat to Colombus Crew was a shock but more pertinently, losses to RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund suggested inexperience of competing with Europe's elite could be a concern ahead of the Champions League.

One plus point is the form of Morgan Rogers, who ended last season in superb form and continued that into pre-season. The forward started every pre-season match and score three goals in his first two matches - he is currently in line to start the season alongside Leon Bailey and Ollie Watkins in attack.

Villa lost Douglas Luiz and Moussa Diaby in the transfer window but the additions of Ross Barkley, Amadou Onana and Enzo Barrenechea, a full pre-season for Jacob Ramsey, plus the returns of Jaden Philogene and Cameron Archer mean they are well covered in both positions.

In fact, the same could be said for the whole team. Villa's transfer activity has led to two good players vying for each position, hinting Unai Emery is looking to have another crack at the top four alongside the club's Champions League exploits.

Pre-season results

July 17: Walsall 0-3 Aston Villa; July 20: Spartak Trnava 0-3 Aston Villa; July 27: Aston Villa 1-4 Columbus Crew; July 31: Aston Villa 0-2 RB Leipzig; August 3: Aston Villa 0-1 Club America; August 7: Aston Villa 3-2 Athletic Bilbao; August 10: Aston Villa 0-2 Borussia Dortmund

Bournemouth's mission to replace Solanke

How will Andoni Iraola replace the outgoing Dominic Solanke? With back-up striker Enes Unal recovering from foot surgery that took place last month, it will be a question facing the Bournemouth manager as this season starts.

Bournemouth's first game without Solanke - their final pre-season match against Girona - saw different options tried. Phillip Billing led the line for the Cherries, while young striker Daniel Jebbison came off the bench to net the winner in a 3-2 victory.

And there are still plenty of goals in this Bournemouth side. Justin Kluivert and Luis Sinisterra also found the net in that game, while Antoine Semenyo will look to build on his positive campaign last time out which saw him score eight Premier League goals.

Keep an eye out for attacking midfielder Alex Scott, who endured a injury-hit debut campaign on the south coast last time out. Bournemouth's attack is not the same without Solanke, but that doesn't mean it can't still be effective.

Pre-season results

July 20: Wrexham 1-1 Bournemouth; July 24: Arsenal 1-1 (5-4 pens) Bournemouth; August 4: Bournemouth 1-0 Rayo Vallecano; August 10: Bournemouth 3-2 Girona

Brentford have enough goals - but what about the back?

As Ivan Toney's future continues to hang in the balance, Brentford's pre-season has shown how they might adapt should their talisman depart.

Club record signing Igor Thiago - seen as the natural Toney replacement - scored a brace in a 5-2 win over AFC Wimbledon, but the Brazilian striker has been ruled out until the end of the year after suffering a meniscus injury in that game.

But while Thiago has suffered an early blow to his Bees career, the attacking form of Bryan Mbeumo, Kevin Schade and Yoane Wissa has been a major positive for Thomas Frank.

The three forwards all found the net in Brentford's first and last pre-season matches against AFC Wimbledon and Wolfsburg - plus Toney returning against the latter hints that he will add to that attack for one final season.

However, while the attack is firing, the defence is uneasy. Aaron Hickey, Ben Mee and Rico Henry - who all missed large chunks of last season - barely played a match between them in pre-season, meaning it is likely a makeshift back four of Mads Roerslev, Nathan Collins, Ethan Pinnock and Kristoffer Ajer will start the campaign.

But the imminent arrivals of midfielders Jens Cajuste and Fabio Carvalho will raise spirits as the season begins. With the goals flowing and the defence far from convincing, Brentford could be an entertaining watch for the neutral.

Pre-season results

July 20: AFC Wimbledon 2-5 Brentford; July 25: Benfica 1-1 Brentford; July 30: Estrela da Amadora 3-1 Brentford;August 3: Brentford 1-1 Watford; August 9: Brentford 4-4 Wolfsburg

Brighton looking sharp under Hurzeler

If pre-season is any indication, then Brighton fans can add Yankuba Minteh to the list of promising young wingers lighting up the south coast.

The 20-year-old has needed little teething time after his £30m move from Newcastle United, finding the net against Kashima Antlers, Tokyo Verdy, Queens Park Rangers and Villarreal with a sharpness befitting his clawed celebration.

In fact, the 4-0 win over Villarreal displayed Brighton's depth in attack. Danny Welbeck scored twice, while Joao Pedro joined Minteh on the scoresheet. Kaoru Mitoma is back after his long-term injury with Simon Adingra and Jeremy Sarmiento - who impressed last season at Ipswich - also set for big campaigns.

The Seagulls also dipped into the market to get Ibrahim Osman and Arsenal's highly-rated winger Amario Cozier-Duberry and if Celtic's Matt O'Riley joins, then the Seagulls have their perfect replacement for the departed Pascal Gross, one of the most creative players in the league last term.

Under new manager Fabian Hurzeler, Brighton look sharp. They won every game in pre-season, the task now is to turn that friendly form into league points.

Pre-season results

July 24: Kashima Antlers 1-5 Brighton; July 28: Tokyo Verdy 2-4 Brighton; August 3: QPR 0-1 Brighton, Brighton 4-0 Villarreal

New faces but same old Chelsea?

Chelsea's pre-season campaign has presumably left Enzo Maresca with more questions than answers. As the new boss attempts to organise his bloated squad into something coherent, or at least recognisable, new additions continue to land on his doorstep.

Pedro Neto, introduced during Chelsea's 1-1 draw with Inter, is the club's latest arrival, and 10th recruit of the summer window - 11th if you include Maresca himself.

As for the football, it feels muddled. The Italian has an obvious style - evident when Leicester won the Championship title last term - but that style, or identity, is yet to translate at Chelsea.

The Blues conceded 13 goals across six games during pre-season. Of those six, they managed just one win, and that was against Mexican team Club America. Maresca's side are, at best, defensively naive - at worst, completely chaotic. Not what you want when Manchester City are the first visitors to town on opening weekend.

The manager has already been forced to defend his persistence with a high line, which has landed Chelsea in all sorts of trouble during a messy pre-season. Defensive errors saw them concede twice against Wrexham, four times against Celtic, before shipping another four to Man City - ominous given the way the fixture list has fallen.

Maresca simply has more players than he knows what to do with - 41 are listed on Chelsea's website. Just where all these individuals - a term used deliberately - fit is surely Maresca's foremost and greatest challenge, and that's before a competitive ball is even kicked.

Pre-season results

July 24: Chelsea 2-2 Wrexham; July 27: Chelsea 1-4 Celtic; July 31: Chelsea 0-3 Club America; August 3: Chelsea 2-4 Man City; August 6: Chelsea 1-2 Real Madrid; August 11: Chelsea 1-1 Inter Milan

Glasner continues to improve Palace attack

Crystal Palace were a joy to watch under Oliver Glasner last season but this pre-season has been dominated by transfer talk.

Michael Olise has jumped ship to Bayern Munich, Marc Guehi is being courted by Newcastle, while the future of Eberechi Eze could go right down to the August 30 deadline.

But Palace's slick recruitment policy under sporting director Dougie Freedman shows Palace are prepared. In came defender Chadi Riad, winger Ismaila Sarr and attacking midfielder Daichi Kamada to soften the blow should Palace's three stars of last season move on.

Pre-season showed Kamada - who worked with Glasner at Eintracht Frankfurt - brings a new edge to Crystal Palace's attack, scoring in Palace's win over Crawley and their draw with Nantes on Sunday.

And Glasner has kept improving Palace at the top end of the pitch. Odsonne Edouard has looked sharp up front with a couple of goals, while even Jeffrey Schlupp found the net playing in a makeshift centre forward role. Don't forget Jean-Philippe Mateta too, who scored five goals as France claimed silver at the Olympic Games.

There are some concerns at the back though - high-profile mistakes from Joachim Andersen stress the need for calm in this possession and pressing style system. It makes Guehi's role for Palace even more important, but will he stay?

Pre-season results

July 27: Crawley 3-6 Crystal Palace; July 31: Crystal Palace 3-1 Wolves; August 3: Crystal Palace 3-1 West Ham; August 11: Crystal Palace 1-1 FC Nantes

Everton's new signings bedding in well

Everton sold Amadou Onana and his replacement Tim Iroegbunam has been producing positive displays to do his chances of starting the Premier League curtain-raiser against Brighton no harm.

One driving run in the last pre-season friendly against Roma in particular got supporters out of their seats, with Iliman Ndiaye collecting Jesper Lindstrom's pass to pirouette away from an opponent and be denied by a fingertip save.

It is not the only time Everton's new signings have shone together. O'Brien and Lindstrom joined each other on the scoresheet in the 3-0 win over Preston and after years of mis-spending and wasted transfer fees, Evertonians will hope to see a lot more of this during their final season at Goodison Park.

The game against Roma would end in a 1-1 draw courtesy of a fine disguised finish inside the near post by Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Such composure provided a timely reminder of the striker's importance at the sharp end, if ever Sean Dyche needed one.

That his side won just one of their five pre-season friendlies won't have concerned him, but it underlined the need to build on the existing firepower - not weaken it. Chasing a quick buck before the August 30 deadline, despite Calvert-Lewin's contract expiring next summer, would appear a foolish move.

Pre-season results

July 19: Sligo Rovers 3-3 Everton; July 27: Salford City 2-1 Everton; July 30: Coventry 3-0 Everton; August 3: Preston 0-3 Everton; August 10: Everton 1-1 Roma

Smith Rowe on fire for Fulham

Emile Smith Rowe has rediscovered his form after trading north for west London. The 24-year-old has scored twice in two pre-season appearances and looks primed for a bounce-back season.

Marco Silva's system bears similarity to that employed by Mikel Arteta during the 2021/22 season, Smith Rowe's best in an Arsenal shirt.

He has adapted well to the tactical demands under Silva and began building exciting partnerships with his teammates. His connection with Antonee Robinson looks a particularly potent one.

Fulham's flying left-back was named Player of the Season last campaign, and his trademark surges forward will create space for Smith Rowe to move infield when operating off the left.

Robinson delivered the whipped cross as Smith Rowe headed a debut goal in a 2-1 loss to Sevilla, while former Gunner Alex Iwobi set up his strike against Hoffenheim hinting at the beginning of an exciting left-hand side in west London.

Pre-season results

August 2: Benfica 0-1 Fulham; August 5: Fulham 1-2 Sevilla; August 10: Hoffenheim 0-2 Fulham

McKenna takes trademark intensity up a notch

Ipswich Town are ready to make their return to the big time, barely 15 months on from being a League One club. Six new signings have come through the door so far, but manager Kieran McKenna is right to be cautious not to upset the dressing room unity.

His side finished their pre-season campaign with a 1-0 win against Nice last Saturday. The Tractor Boys are known for their high pressing - they were the second-best side in the Championship at winning the ball high and creating attempts at goal from those situations - but they have also been doing their homework on set-pieces.

Axel Tuanzebe notched the only goal from a dead-ball situation, one week on from Jack Taylor having scored the only goal against Bundesliga side Hoffenheim from a set-piece.

Ipswich scored 19 goals from such situations in 2023/24, which was second only to Cardiff City. This route to goal could prove vital for the Premier League newcomers over the next nine months.

McKenna will have learned lessons from previous clubs to have perished having failed to adapt their style to a higher standard.

"There's no doubt about it, I've spoken lots about how we're going to have to try and keep our identity but adapt," he said. "We're not going to be able to open up the game as much every minute of every game pretty much like we did last season."

Greater efficiency with set-plays will be important, but back-to-back clean sheets against teams playing in the Europa League this season will have pleased McKenna, too. Bravery, intensity and aggression are buzzwords of the boss, who has used his friendlies to trial different personnel in different positions.

At times, he has played with a back three, wing-backs and with two No 10s. McKenna felt that steps forward had been made in their final warm-up game, but warned: "The reality is moving from the division we were in to the division we're going to in the space of two years is an incredible jump."

Ipswich are ready to take the next step on their journey.

Pre-season results

July 20: Shakhtar Donetsk 0-1 Ipswich; July 27: Ipswich 1-2 Fortuna Dusseldorf; August 3: Hoffenheim 1-0 Ipswich; August 10: Ipswich 1-0 Nice

Leicester have striker issue ahead of season kick-off

Steve Cooper has a striker issue going into the new season.

Jamie Vardy, who looked set to be Leicester's first-choice No 9 this season, suffered a knock after scoring against Villarreal in the first pre-season game and has not played or trained since.

Meanwhile, Patson Daka was due to replace him but then he limped off early in the 3-0 loss to Lens as Leicester ended their pre-season with a 3-0 loss and was seen with his leg in a protective boot.

Wide player Stephy Mavididi looks next in line to start up front with young forward Tom Cannon a barely-used reserve option - and given Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall joined Enzo Maresca at Chelsea, the Foxes forward line looks a little blunt.

Cooper and Co have addressed this in the transfer market by bringing in Bobby DeCordova-Reid and Facundo Buonanotte on loan - while Leicester got around their PSR issues which meant the impressive Abdul Fatawu did not need to be sold - but is that enough up top?

Pre-season results

July 20: Villarreal 1-2 Leicester; July 23: Shrewsbury 1-2 Leicester; July 26: Leicester 0-1 Palermo; August 3: Leicester 0-1 Augsburg; August 10: Lens 3-0 Leicester

Salah back to his best, but how will Liverpool's midfield look on opening day?

There are fresh opportunities for midfielders as Arne Slot moves Liverpool toward a more controlled style of play. Dominik Szoboszlai scored the winner against Real Betis, a sign that he is thriving in a more free-roaming role.

Curtis Jones suffered an injury in that game after voicing his excitement about Slot's new approach, which he said "is more me. I can get on the ball more. I can 'do me' more."

Slot has been experimenting with his options in the No 6 position, fielding Ryan Gravenberch, Wataru Endo, and Szoboszlai in the role across their pre-season games.

The Dutchman has spoke highly of Gravenberch's performances and Alexis Mac Allister is another untested option, but reports suggest that a player for the role will be targeted as Slot eyes his first signing as Liverpool manager.

Gravenberch - who managed only 12 league starts in 2023/24 - impressed again in the Reds' 4-1 win over Sevilla, though Spain international Martin Zubimendi is on the club's radar.

Elsewhere, Mohamed Salah looks to be back to his electric best. The Egyptian forward had a quiet end to last season after injury restricted him to just two league appearances between New Year's Day and March 10, but he was sharp in friendly wins against Betis, Arsenal and Manchester United - and looked hungry against Sevilla.

Less established players have made their mark, too, with the most recent being England U18 international Trey Nyoni, who scored in front of the Kop against Sevilla, suggesting Slot will follow Jurgen Klopp's lead and continue to integrate promising academy products.

Pre-season results

July 26: Liverpool 1-0 Real Betis; July 31: Liverpool 2-1 Arsenal; August 3: Liverpool 3-0 Man Utd; August 11: Liverpool 4-1 Sevilla and Liverpool 0-0 Las Palmas

Man City youngsters impress Pep - but where does it leave Grealish?

Pep Guardiola has been impressed by City's academy graduates during their pre-season tour of the US and he may trust them to fill the attacking void left after Julian Alvarez's move to Atletico Madrid.

Oscar Bobb has arguably been their best performer across pre-season. The Norwegian scored against Celtic and Chelsea, advancing his case for an improved role in the City squad this season. He faces added competition with the arrival of Savinho, who showed glimpses of quality in the Community Shield, but Guardiola seems ready to place his trust in the 21-year-old, who is "always in a high level."

After a successful season on loan at Sheffield United, James McAtee is another looking for more regular game time and his playing style could earmark him as a possible replacement for Alvarez, who often played just behind Erling Haaland up front.

Guardiola has also been pleased with Jack Grealish, who is primed to bounce back from a disappointing third season in sky blue and a "heartbreaking" omission from the European Championships.

"I think he's come back perfect with the same happiness and unbelievable attitude with the group," his manager said.

Whether Grealish can find the early season form to nail down a place in this team, with Phil Foden, Jeremy Doku, Bernardo Silva, Savinho and Bobb his competition out wide, is another question.

Pre-season results

July 23: Man City 3-4 Celtic, July 27: Man City 2-3 AC Milan, July 30: Man City 2-2 (1-4 pens) Barcelona, August 3: Man City 4-2 Chelsea, August 10: Man City 1-1 (7-6 pens) Man Utd - Community Shield

Is Rashford's place under threat as Man Utd seek defensive reliability?

The additions of Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui could deliver the defensive reinforcement that Erik ten Hag needs.

United conceded seven goals across their last three pre-season games and their squad depth in the area has already been tested at this early stage in this season.

Ahead of the Community Shield loss to Manchester City, Ten Hag said there is a "question mark" over the fitness of Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof and Luke Shaw while Leny Yoro and Tyrell Malacia are ruled out with longer-term injuries.

United will be hoping their defence can be shored up, especially after a woeful defensive record last season which saw them concede 20 shots per game on a regular basis.

The positive news saw Amad Diallo impress and score in multiple games, while pre-season has also shown there is a path back to regular involvement for Mason Mount and Jadon Sancho. Alejandro Garnacho's solo strike at Wembley showed his reliability, while even Antony is promising more attacking output this season.

It raises more questions over Marcus Rashford's role in the squad after his dreadful misses against Man City at Wembley. Is his position in the United team seriously under threat?

Pre-season results

July 15: Man Utd 0-1 Rosenborg; July 20: Man Utd 0-2 Rangers, July 27: Man Utd 1-2 Arsenal, July 31: Man Utd 3-2 Real Betis, August 3: Man Utd 0-3 Liverpool, August 10: Man City 1-1 (7-6 pens) Man Utd - Community Shield

Newcastle stars warming up for new season