Premier League legend Alan Shearer and BBC Sport pundit Chris Sutton have both revealed their individual predictions for Manchester United’s showdown with Arsenal.
The Gunners will arrive at Old Trafford late on Sunday afternoon and Mikel Arteta’s men will present a tough first test for Manchester United in the new season.
United’s rollercoaster 2024-25 Premier League campaign culminated in May with the Red Devils’ worst finish in the table since the formation of the league in 1992.
The Red Devils could only finish 15th in the Premier League in their previous outing, with Ruben Amorim’s men missing out on European qualification for the new season.
Arsenal, on the other hand, finished runners-up in the 2024-25 Premier League season and the Gunners were 10 points adrift from defending champions Liverpool.
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Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim looks on prior to the pre-season friendly match between Manchester United and Fiorentina at Old Trafford in 2025 in Manchester, England.
Photo by Ben Roberts – Danehouse/Getty Images
Alan Shearer’s prediction for Man Utd and Arsenal’s 2025-26 Premier League match at Old Trafford
Alan Shearer has admitted that Manchester United and Arsenal’s encounter at Old Trafford on the opening weekend of the season is a “tough” match to predict.
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But the Premier League legend settled on a prediction of a draw between both sides and singled out Arsenal signing Viktor Gyokeres and United signing Benjamin Sesko.
Speaking to the Metro, Shearer said: “It’s wonderful for us to sit down on Sunday and watch two giants go head to head so early in the season. Tough one to call but I’ll go for a draw.
“There’s always a surprise result on the opening weekend. I don’t know what a surprise result would be in this game.
“It’s so tough to call with so many interesting moving parts. [Gyokeres] on one side, Sesko on the other.
“Amorim and Gyokores know each other really well. [Martin] Zubimendi may free up Declan Rice more, Man United have done really well in forward positions.
“It’s a tough one to call so early in the season. There’ll be needle at Old Trafford.”
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Chris Sutton revealed a different outcome to Alan Shearer for the Arsenal match and picked up on a key Man Utd detail
Chris Sutton suggested that United now have a major benefit of not playing European football in the new season amid their strong showing in the window.
Previewing the new Premier League season for BBC Sport, he said: “I really like what United have done in the transfer window and they don’t have European football, which is such a massive advantage for them.”
However, Sutton didn’t agree on the same outcome as Shearer for Sunday’s Premier League clash and instead backed Arsenal to beat United 2-1 at Old Trafford.
“It is going to be close, but although I feel really positive about United this season, I think they will lose this and Gyokeres may just have the final say against his old manager,” he said in his BBC Sport column.
Kick-off for the 2025-26 Premier League encounter between United and Arsenal at Old Trafford is scheduled for 4:30pm UK time on Sunday.