Manchester United vs Galatasaray – Preview

Posted on July 29, 2016 by Sreya

Manchester United will play their last game on the AON pre-season Tour 2016 at Gothenburg, Sweden when they face Galatasaray on 30th July, Saturday. Jose Mourinho’s side will be eager to get their first win of the pre-season after a disappointing 4-1 loss at the hands of Borussia Dortmund last week.

As the Red Devils continue to pursue Paul Pogba, their new manager must quickly find his best possible eleven as only the friendly against Everton remain before Manchester United face Leicester City in the Community Shield.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is expected to make his Manchester United debut while the likes of Anthony Martial, Morgan Schneiderlin, Marouane Fellaini, Matteo Darmian and Bastian Schweinsteiger, all of whom participated in the 2016 Euros are likely to take the field as well.

Bastian Schweinsteiger, who recently announced his retirement from Germany’s international commitments, has been linked with a move away but could prove to be a crucial cog in Jose Mourinho’s midfield should he be able to achieve his previous fitness.

“Mourinho is a big star. He’d been my manager at Inter. He’s nice. The guy says what he wants. I like him. He’s the leader of the army. But he cares, too. He would text me all the time at Inter, wondering how I was doing.”

– Zlatan Ibrahimovic on Jose Mourinho.

Galatasaray had an underwhelming 2015/16 as they finished sixth in the Turkish Super Lig and were pre-maturely eliminated from the UEFA Champions League in the group stages. Wesley Sneijder and Lukas Podoslki are among the more renowned players of the squad, which boasts of versatility and steel under the guidance of Jan Olde Riekerink.

According to Head-2-Head statistics, these two clubs have played each other in six competitive fixtures, with two wins and three draws for the English Premier League club. This includes the infamous goalless draw at Istanbul during Alex Ferguson’s reign which knocked Manchester United out of the UEFA Champions League on the ‘away goals’ rule.