The new Premier League campaign has arrived, and Rio Ferdinand has already thrown down the gauntlet to Manchester United. Ahead of their opening-weekend trip to Hull City, the former United captain made it emphatically clear there can be no excuses. A season that begins with such promise has to start with a maximum return, and Ferdinand did not waste a second on sentiment. “You must deliver from minute one,” he insists, pointing to the pressure settling squarely on the manager’s shoulders. This is not about style points. It’s about the three points.

Ferdinand’s dissection of the starting weapons should be a daunting picture for Hull. In our analysis, he has the look of the standard-bearer once again, with the captain’s armband a responsibility that carries real power at Old Trafford. Marcus Rashford, elite left and on the wing, looks sharp and lethal in his attacking movements, while Kobbie Mainoo is expected to run the whole midfield engine. Anchoring the backline, Matthijs de Ligt and Leny Yoro offer a martial air in front of the goal, and the explosive firepower of Bryan herself adds yet another gear to the attack. The depth, Ferdinand says, is there. But he stresses the strongest sides don’t merely field names: they produce when it matters.

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