Date: Saturday 16th August Competition: Premier league Venue: Old Trafford Kick-Off: 12:45 Head-to-head league record: Manchester United wins 11, draws 5, Swansea wins 6. Can United recapture their form and better their 13 year low of 64 points from last season? Will Swansea's eye-catching strike force give Van Gaal nightmares? For the second season in a row the Welsh side face United on the opening game - though this time at Old Trafford rather than the Liberty - and Garry Monk will be hoping that they can avoid a repeat of the 4-1 defeat handed out by David Moyes. A lot has happened since then, and Swansea fans might well be buoyed by the fact that they're not facing the champions this time out. But United have been given an injection with the arrival of extremist manager Louis Van Gaal, of whom you can't help but expect big things - he'd probably drag his team to some sort of success whether they like it or not. The two sides have also changed significantly since last year: United might not have invested as heavily as they might have been expected, but there's little chance they will resemble the lambs they looked last season. Swansea meanwhile have added Bafetimbi Gomis to their front-line, alongside last season's revelation Wilfried Bony, and though Michu has moved on they will be confident that their twin powerful strike-force will be able to plunder enough goals to kick them up the league. Whether they can start off on the front foot at Old Trafford remains to be seen, but the one thing that is certain is goals: in the past three years, Swanseas opening matches have produced 14 goals. The smart money would be on United to continue their record of winning most of their opening games, but Swansea are not an easy prospect at all. In terms of personal records, Wayne Rooney will be looking to score twice and draw himself level with Thierry Henry in the list of all-time Premier League scorers, on 175 goals. Team News Robin Van Persie is likely to miss out due to a lack of fitness after his World Cup exploits, while Michael Carrick (ankle), striker Danny Welbeck (knee), centre-half Jonny Evans, Antonio Valencia (both leg) are all out. Brazilian right-back Rafael has overcome a groin injury and should be okay to start. Swansea meanwhile can welcome back Nathan Dyer and Wayne Routledge, after they missed the side's last preseason game against Villarreal. However, Leon Britton, Marvin Emnes and Jay Fulton will all miss out on the trip to Old Trafford. Team News ViaLikely Line-UpsMan Utd: De Gea, Lindegaard, Amos, Rafael, Smalling, Jones, M Keane, Blackett, James, Fletcher, Cleverley, Herrera, Fellaini, Young, Nani, Kagawa, Zaha, Januzaj, Rooney, Hernandez, Powell, Lingard, W Keane. Swansea: Fabianski, Rangel, Taylor, Williams, Bartley, Ki, Shelvey, Sigurdsson, Montero, Gomis, Bony, Tremmel, Tiendalli, Amat, Dyer, Routledge, Sheehan, King, Kingsley. Who do you think will win? Share your predictions below.
