Manchester United take the long trip down south to London in order to play out their second Premier League match of the campaign, a tricky away day against Brentford. Can the Red Devils get three points here or will Brentford better the globally followed club?
Premier League preview: Brentford vs Manchester United
While not a traditional Premier League fixture, whenever Manchester United turns up to play football people will be invigorated to tune in – even if the results have been below par in recent seasons.
Erik ten Hag has nailed his colours to the mast with an attacking and fluid style that utilises the width of the pitch with speedy players. At Ajax, he used players like Dusan Tadic and Antony to create offensive rhythms to get the ball forward. While the summer fixtures count for little come to the end of the Premier League there are inclinations that the Dutch manager has been able to revitalize existing players on the books at Old Trafford.
Jadon Sancho was a ghost of his former self in his debut season with Manchester United but has already impressed on their tour of Australia having scored against Liverpool, Melbourne Victory, and Aston Villa. Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial could both see their gametime increase having similarly impressed in the summer.
Little is known what to think of Brentford’s pre-season results. Thomas Frank is a vague and unusual character even at the clearest of times. Dismantled 4-0 by Wolfsburg, defeated 2-1 by Stuttgart, and held to a 2-2 draw with Strasbourg has really left the club with a deflated feeling even if the games are not competitive fixtures.
Brentford: Second Season Syndrome?
Promoted teams must always deal with the phenomena of the second season syndrome. While some call it a lazy stance, there’s evidence to suggest that the second season in the Premier League is harder to survive than the first. While the root of the issue is unknown, conjecture speculates that owners and coaches become complacent after the initial success of surviving the first season and don’t adequately restructure.
Brentford has brought in a few players this season, however, the likes of Ben Mee from relegated Burnley and Lazio’s job-share goalkeeper, Thomas Strakosha are seldom the signings to rejuvenate a Premier League team to the next level.
Manchester United: Better Without Ronaldo?
Finger pointing isn’t a healthy affair. Yet the roster at Manchester United has had its fair share of fiery characters in the past few years. From players like Paul Pogba, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and Cristiano Ronaldo to outspoke managers like Jose Mourhino and Louis van Gaal – a harmonious working atmosphere it certainly is not.
Cristiano Ronaldo made it a point to train alone and skip the pre-season tour that most of the team participated in. While he had a personal success of 18 goals in 30 appearances in the league last season, the team lifted no silverware and dropped four places in the standings when comparing to the season before without him.
Here in Australia, Manchester United looked good without him under Hag and lacked no goal threat with plenty of options as they won three of their four fixtures here and avoided defeat in the other.
What time is the Brentford vs Manchester United game?
This game is expected to kick off at the local time of 5:30 pm on Saturday 13th of August, live from Brentford Community Stadium. Over here in Australia, that gives us an early morning kick-off at 02:30 am AEST – on the Sunday morning. Is there a better way to start your Sunday morning than with Premier League football?
Game | Venue | Date/Time | Streaming Services |
---|---|---|---|
Brentford vs Manchester United | Brentford Community Stadium | LIVE: Sun, Aug 14th – 02:30am AEST | Optus Sport |
Which live streaming services will show Brentford vs Manchester United?
Optus Sport has the contract to broadcast the Premier League here in Australia until 2028. Therefore if you want to watch this exciting match-up from Brentford and beyond, then be sure to sign up for their service.
Streaming service | Brentford vs Manchester United |
---|---|
Optus Sport | Yes (live & on demand) |
Kayo Sports | Yes (replay only) |
Foxtel Now | Yes (replay only) |
BeIN Sports Connect | Yes (replay only) |
DAZN | No |
Stan Sport | No |
Paramount Plus | No |
Amazon Prime | No |
Free to air | No |
Brentford vs Manchester United live – how to watch online
As touched upon, you’ll need to engage with Optus Sport. The service is currently priced at $199 for the annual pass. Alternatively, you can pay on monthly basis, which will cost you $24.99 each month. The attractive point with the latter is that it doesn’t come with a lock-in contract or obligation.
At present, there are no free trials for this product, so you’re going to have to open up your wallet if you want to access it.
However, if you are already with Optus for other services i.e. for your internet, telecommunications, or mobile phone then there’s a good chance that you could save some money when purchasing Optus Sport. This is because the Optus corporation is very keen to retain customers and combine services. David de Gea might not make many saves, but you can with multiple services with Optus. Be sure to head to their website to how exactly you could save on a wide range of products from their portfolio.
If you’re in the market for a new internet service provider or mobile phone, taking one out with Optus in most cases will give you a discounted opportunity to watch all the Premier League action you could ever.
Watch EPL replays
BeIN Sports offer us, greedy consumers of football, the chance to watch all replays of the EPL season any time we wish. So, if setting your alarm for a ridiculous time to catch the English games live is too much for you, you can still follow your favourite team with the BeIN sports site.
BeIN Sports have made this incredible offer of unlimited EPL access in partnership with Foxtel and Kayo Sports. There are 14-day free trials on offer through Kayo, which let you experience EPL replays on BeIN immediately, and which also offer excellent access to both Serie A and Bundesliga football.
You can find Kayo Sports and Foxtel on the Telstra TV box, where you can also stream a fantastic range of movies and TV shows.
Optus Sport, online and through the brilliant Optus Sport app, offers unmatched access to the fantastic EPL replays too – and is the perfect place to see extended highlights and post-match analysis, as well as full game replays if you missed them the first time.
Also, BeIN Sports Connect is BeIN Sports’ stand-alone streaming service and it offers a 14-day free trial. This allows you to watch EPL replays without a Kayo or Foxtel subscription.
FURTHER READINGS:
- 6 unique features you can get from Kayo Sports
- How Much Does Kayo Sports Cost?
- Optus Sport Review – A Must for English Football Fans
Streaming Devices for Optus Sport App
Devices supported on Optus Sport
Streaming Devices
- Apple TV (4th generation and above)
- Fetch TV (Mini, 2nd Gen, Mighty)
- Android TV (Android 7 and above)
- Fire TV (1st & 2nd generation)
- Hubbl
Smart TV
- LG Smart TV (2017 models or newer)
- Samsung Smart TVs (2017 models or newer)
Mobile devices
- iPhone (iOS 10.0 and above)
- iPad (iOS 10.0 and above)
- Android (versions 5.0 and above)
Casting
- AirPlay (Apple TV Gen 1-3)
- Chromecast (2nd generation and above)
Gaming consoles
- Xbox One
- Xbox One S
- Xbox One X
Key Players
Brentford key players
Christian Norgaard quite rightfully picked up the player of the season award for Brentford, as the Dane was impressive throughout the campaign in the middle of the park. He showed a capability to read games and win the ball back before opposition offences could gather momentum.
The latter wouldn’t typically score many goals but was instrumental with key passes to Bryan Mbeumo and Ivan Toney who carried the Brentford attacks forward. Toney even etched some club history with his efficiency up top as he scored Brentford’s first-ever Premier League hat-trick as he dismantled Norwich City at Carrow Road in a 3-1 triumph.
Manchester United key players
Jadon Sancho will no doubt be asking for a re-do of his debut season at Manchester United. The Englishman showed little worth throughout his 29 appearances in the Premier League last season. It’ll be a make or break for him this year as Erik ten Hag will act without mercy if he cannot produce the goods when needed. The wide player however has looked impressive under the new regime during the friendly matches.
One of the new signings at Manchester United is Christian Eriksen. The Danish international midfielder returned to the Premier League after Inter Milan severed his contract over concerns about his cardiac health (having fainted during a game in the European Championship). That return was granted to him via Brentford who agreed on a short contract but has now moved on to Manchester United. He gained a decent following during his short stay in West London, will he come back to haunt his former club?
Of course if he stays, Ronaldo will be a focal point for the team too.
Other football to watch after the EPL
After the final whistle on Brentford vs Man United has been sounded there’s plenty more action to get stuck into on Optus Sport. Manchester United’s women’s team can be seen in the Women’s Super League, while you can always watch a ream of UEFA international competitions and even the J.League football from Japan!
EPL teams you might like
The EPL is about much more than one team. Check out our team pages below and stay right up to date with their latest matches.