Leeds United v Manchester United: Pre-season friendly at Croke Park on August 12
Leeds United will meet Manchester United in a pre-season friendly at Croke Park in Dublin, Ireland on August 12, 2026, ahead of the 2026-27 season. Leeds enter the fixture on a three-match winning run after a 2-0 victory over RB Leipzig, while Manchester United come off a 1-1 draw with Paris Saint-Germain.
Daniel Farke’s Leeds secured an early lead against RB Leipzig and prevented the Bundesliga side from scoring, a performance the article describes as defensively commendable despite limited ball control. The Whites have not been beaten by Manchester United in their last three meetings. Michael Carrick’s squad conceded early against PSG but replied with a first-half equaliser, and the report notes that a number of United’s key players have joined the Ireland training camp.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin, identified in the piece as 29 years old, opened Leeds’ scoring in seven minutes against RB Leipzig after having scored a brace against Liverpool in a prior match. The article states that his early goal was important for Leeds’ confidence. His selection in the starting XI against Leipzig is highlighted as part of Leeds’ recent attacking form.
The report states that Bryan Mbeumo is continuing a strong scoring run for Manchester United, having scored three goals in the last two matches and three goals in four pre-season games, and describes him as a 27-year-old Cameroonian forward who will lead the Red Devils’ attack. The article presents his recent goalscoring as a factor that could trouble opposing defences.
On availability, the piece notes Ilia Gruev may miss the game for Leeds because of fitness issues. Manchester United personnel updates in the article include Matheus Cunha and Senne Lammens returning to the squad after minor unrelated illnesses, Kobbie Mainoo and Marcus Rashford joining the Ireland camp following the FIFA World Cup 2026, and Matthijs de Ligt and Benjamin Šeško rejoining after injury issues; Karl Darlow is also reported as having joined the camp. The article adds that Mason Mount was taken off during the PSG game due to an injury concern and is not yet confirmed for the match, while Lisandro Martinez has not returned from the post-World Cup break.
Projected lineups given in the source are listed as: Cairns (GK); Justin, Rodon, Muharemovic; Bogle, Ampadu, Longstaff, Bornauw; James, Calvert-Lewin, Wilson for Leeds United, and Lammens (GK); Dalot, Maguire, Heaven, Shaw; Tielemans, Santos; Amad, Fernandes, Cunha; Mbeumo for Manchester United. These eleven-player lists are presented as the expected starting selections for the fixture.
The article characterises Leeds as posing an attacking threat and describes Manchester United as possessing superior squad quality under Michael Carrick, concluding that United might just edge past Leeds in the friendly. The source’s explicit match prediction is: Leeds 2-3 Man Utd.
The match is scheduled for August 12 at Croke Park; the article states that Indian viewers can watch the pre-season game via the FanCode app and website.