Preview: Under-23s and Under-18s in action

Neil Wood’s Under-23s host Fulham on Friday night at Leigh Sports Village (kick-off 19:00 BST), while the following day, the Under-18s travel down to the East Midlands to face Derby County in a game which begins at 12:00 BST.

Supporters attending at Leigh on Friday will have a chance to win a pair of Nemanja Matic's match-worn boots in an exclusive competition.

Here’s the lowdown on both fixtures...

HOW CAN YOU WATCH THE GAMES?

MUTV are broadcasting both matches, with coverage of the Under-23s beginning from 18:30 BST on Friday and the Under-18s programme getting under way at 11.45 BST on Saturday. As well as being available on Sky and Virgin Media in the UK and Ireland, you can also watch MUTV via your laptop or PC. The MUTV app, which offers both live programmes and on-demand content, is also now available on Xbox One, Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV, as well as the iOS and Android app stores.

THE UNDER-23s' SEASON SO FAR

Our Reserves currently sit top of the Premier League 2 Division 2 table, with three wins and a draw from our four games so far. After convincing victories over West Brom, Reading and Newcastle, our 100 per-cent start to the season was halted by West Ham in our last outing, at Old Trafford. Largie Ramazani’s late header levelled the scores at 2-2 after goals from Nathan Holland and Anthony Scully overturned the early advantage given to us by Angel Gomes’s stunning hit.

Ramazani now has three goals this season, although James Garner is currently the Under-23s' leading scorer in the league with four. Several of our youngsters were involved with their national sides over the international break. Ethan Galbraith made his senior debut for Northern Ireland in their 1-0 friendly win over Luxembourg, while Gomes and Brandon Williams featured in England Under-20s' matches against the Netherlands and Switzerland. Dylan Levitt was an unused substitute in Wales’ games against Azerbaijan and Belarus.

A LOOK AT OUR OPPONENTS: FULHAM

Managed by former Cottagers and Everton midfielder Mark Pembridge, the Londoners have endured a difficult start to the season, losing three out of their four opening games. They did, however, clinch an impressive 1-0 victory over Stoke City in their last away outing, with Timmy Abraham – younger brother of Chelsea forward Tammy – scoring the only goal. United will be looking for victory when the teams renew their rivalry on Friday, as Fulham emerged victorious the last time this fixture was played, winning 3-1 at Leigh in January. Despite that result, the Cottagers finished 10th out of 12 teams last season.

HOW ARE THE UNDER-18s GETTING ON?

After the Under-23s have played, attention turns to the Derby County Football Academy, where our Under-18s face the young Rams on Saturday lunchtime. Neil Ryan’s side will be looking for their first points on the road this season, after away defeats to Wolverhampton Wanderers and Liverpool, who edged a 4-3 thriller in our last outing before the international break. Charlie Wellens netted twice in that game and is our joint top-scorer on three goals, alongside Anthony Elanga, who registered in home wins over Sunderland and Blackburn Rovers.

A LOOK AT OUR OPPONENTS: DERBY COUNTY

United sit fifth in the early table, three points and four places above the Rams, who cruised to a 4-1 home victory over Middlesbrough in their last U18 Premier League fixture. That win arrested a three-game losing run for last season’s national champions. A number of Justin Walker’s title-winning side have been promoted to the club’s Under-23s set-up, although, interestingly, United were unbeaten against County in 2018/19, including a 2-1 win in the corresponding fixture in April, courtesy of a Mason Greenwood brace.

If you haven’t already, subscribe to MUTV to ensure you don’t miss out on any of the action this weekend.

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