26 August 2023 , 06:30
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Erik ten Hag and Manchester United can put last weekend's defeat behind them as they play host to Nottingham Forest, but the match won't be on TV.
United were beaten by Spurs last time out, with a Lisandro Martinez own goal sealing victory for the London side. Ten Hag may be pleased to have Forest coming up next, though, having beaten Steve Cooper's side four times last season.
All four of those United wins - two in the league and twice in the League Cup semi-finals - came without the concession of a goal. An injury crisis at left-back isn't the best preparation for last season's third-place finishers, though.
Both legs of last season's semi-final were broadcast live. That's not going to be the case this Saturday, with United - after two TV games to kick off the new campaign - won't be in front of the cameras this time.
Some 200 Premier League matches will be broadcast live this season. This, however, won't be one of them, with none of the official broadcasters - Sky Sports, TNT Sports and Amazon Prime Video - picking it as one of their games.
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Chelsea's home meeting with Luton was the first of five TV games this weekend, airing on Friday night on Sky Sports. TNT Sports has Bournemouth v Spurs on Saturday lunchtime, followed by three further Sky games: Brighton v West Ham on Saturday evening, and Sheffield United v Man City and Newcastle v Liverpool on Sunday.
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Man Utd had the upper hand over Nottingham Forest last season (Getty Images)United have been dealt a blow ahead of the game, with Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia both injured, presenting Ten Hag with a conundrum at left-back. The manager is also still without Rasmus Hojlund, who is continuing his recovery from injury, while Mason Mount is missing after picking up a problem against Spurs.
“Today, for the first time, he [Hojlund] came into team training,” Ten Hag told the media on Friday. “Next week we expect him to do a full week with all the team trainings. So he's very near to making the squad.”
"Definitely we have solutions in our squad to cope with that," the manager added when asked about the injuries. "We thought before the season about this scenario, what could happen. You hope to avoid this scenario, that's also clear, but if it happens, you have to be ready for it. And we are ready to deal with it."