Manchester United and Tottenham Make Six Starting Changes

Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur have reshaped their starting lineups for their Premier League meeting at Old Trafford on Saturday, October 10, 2026, as both clubs seek to improve inconsistent early-season results. United made two changes after drawing with Fulham, while Tottenham recalled six players following their home defeat to Aston Villa.

United brought Leny Yoro and Amad Diallo into the starting XI, with Diogo Dalot and Marcus Rashford moving to the bench. Diallo was making his first appearance of the season, according to The Guardian's match coverage.

The hosts entered the match under pressure after a difficult start to the campaign. According to Sports Illustrated, United had recorded just one league victory, a 5-2 win over newly promoted Ipswich Town, and had already been eliminated from the Carabao Cup.

United also lost the Manchester derby against a 10-man Manchester City before earning a late point at Fulham through Matheus Cunha's deflected goal. The draw followed a difficult spell for Michael Carrick after his appointment as the club's full-time manager.

Sports Illustrated reported that United faced five matches in 18 days before the end of October, making the period a demanding stretch for Carrick's side. Benjamin Šeško, Noussair Mazraoui and Patrick Dorgu were among the players affected by fitness problems, while Cunha was expected to lead the attack in Šeško's absence.

Tottenham made a more extensive overhaul after losing 3-2 at home to Aston Villa. Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall, Destiny Udogie, Conor Gallagher, Marcos Senesi and Mohammed Kudus returned to the starting lineup, while Omar Marmoush, Mateus Fernandes, Rodrigo Bentancur and captain Micky van de Ven dropped to the bench.

Pedro Porro and Andy Robertson were unavailable because of injuries, according to The Guardian's team news. Sports Illustrated separately reported that Tottenham had several other fitness concerns, including the absences of Xavi Simons, Wilson Odobert and Mykhailo Mudryk.

Tottenham manager Roberto De Zerbi was working to improve a team that had struggled to score consistently. Sports Illustrated reported that Spurs had collected only two points from their first five league matches, with their first league goals of the season arriving against Aston Villa before the international break.

According to Opta data cited by Sports Illustrated, Tottenham's shot-conversion rate stood at 2.82%, the second-lowest in the division, while their expected goals total of 5.00 ranked third-lowest. Those figures highlighted the team's difficulties turning attacking opportunities into goals.

Despite Tottenham's recent struggles, United had a challenging record in this fixture. Sports Illustrated reported that Spurs had won eight consecutive matches without defeat before United secured a 2-0 victory earlier in 2026. Tottenham had also lost 25 Premier League away matches against United, a total exceeded only by Everton's 26 away defeats against Arsenal in the same competition.

Bryan Mbeumo was another player to watch for United. Sports Illustrated reported that the Cameroon international had scored six goals in 10 appearances against Tottenham, matching his highest scoring total against a single opponent.

The match took place at Old Trafford in Manchester, with kickoff scheduled for 5:30 p.m. British Summer Time, or 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time. Stuart Attwell was appointed referee, with Jarred Gillett serving as video assistant referee, according to Sports Illustrated.