Old Trafford is the venue for the 135th meeting between Manchester United and Southampton in the latest Premier League installation.
The Saints have endured a rather turbulent time on their return to Premier League football, losing 16 of their 20 outings with a solitary victory coming at home against Everton in November.
But their hosts have been anything but assured throughout a traumatic 2024-25 campaign, sitting 14th in the table and closer to the relegation zone than the desired Champions League places.
A 3-0 September victory at St Mary’s eased the pressure on then-manager Erik ten Hag, with Russel Martin’s side outdone by Matthijs de Ligt, Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho.
Inevitably, both men would eventually be relieved of their duties with Ruben Amorim and Ivan Juric stepping into the spotlight for the respective sides.
Thursday’s fixture has the potential to offer any number of outcomes, with the Reds aiming to build on consecutive impressive performances against Liverpool and Arsenal.
Ahead of the 8:00 PM BST kickoff, we’ve collected a trio of historical talking points to whet the appetite.
An unforgettable debut
With three minutes of added time remaining during a 2016 Premier League stalemate in Manchester, a struggling United side was stung by a Charlie Austin winner eight minutes into his Saints debut.
It was the game’s only goal and condemned United to their lowest points tally (37) after 23 Premier League fixtures.
At the time, this was the 17th league goal scored at the Theatre of Dreams that season and was the least of England’s top-four divisions.
However, while travelling celebrations were manic, it was the last time the Southerners tasted victory against the 20-time English champions, with the Reds unbeaten in the next 16 meetings in all competitions (eight wins & eight draws).
A strong record against the new boys
Say what you will about form and the downfall since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson, but United’s return against newly-promoted sides has been formidable.
Since waving goodbye to the great man, the Reds have tasted defeat once in 33 fixtures against Championship arrivals, winning 24 and drawing eight.
The last loss was a memorable 4-1 capitulation at Vicarage Road against Watford, with then-manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer relieved of his duties 24 hours later.
Since that painful day, the Reds have recorded 17 wins from their last 20 encounters with Premier League new boys.
A bizarre moment in Premier League history
Cast your mind to the 1995-96 campaign, and Fergie’s men were coasting towards league success.
His glamourous side arrived at The Dell for an April encounter, undefeated in 12 games and supplying a scintillating brand of attacking football.
However, having fallen to a shock 3-0 deficit at the break, the Scot ordered his side to discard their now-iconic grey kit for alternative colours.
Ryan Giggs pulled one back in a 3-1 defeat, but the strip was done away with after five unsuccessful outings with poor vision hailed as the reason.
Following the fixture, Umbro reduced the price of the kit because of the backlash from that memorable day!
So, history seems to bode well for Amorim and his improving group as preparations for tomorrow’s fixture continue.
Thankfully, the Portuguese tactician will not have to deal with the perils of a strip change at half-time.
How do you see Manchester United and Southampton playing out in 2024?
Let us know in the comments or across our social channels.
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