BT Sport will show Louis van Gaal’s first league game as the new Manchester United manager exclusively live on the opening day of the new Barclays Premier League season.
The outgoing Netherlands boss’s arrival at Old Trafford on August 16 is one of the highlights of BT Sport’s top picks during the first 13 rounds of the Barclays Premier League season.
The channels, which are free for a second season for BT broadband customers, will show current champions Manchester City three times in the Barclays Premier League during its initial selection of TV matches, as well as their FA Community Shield match versus Arsenal.
BT Sport will show two games between sides that both finished in the top four of the league last season – Arsenal v Manchester City and the match that ended Liverpool’s winning streak last season and perhaps changed the eventual destiny of the title, Liverpool v Chelsea.
The channels have also won the rights to the top six clash – Manchester City v Tottenham Hotspur as well as the Merseyside derby Liverpool v Everton.
Van Gaal has wasted no time in attempting to rebuild the Manchester United squad that finished seventh last year. The Red Devils have already signed 18-year-old left back Luke Shaw from Southampton and midfielder Ander Herrera from Athletic Bilbao.
The opening day fixture at home to Swansea will be the first chance to assess how the new man in the Old Trafford hot seat is likely to fare.
Simon Green, head of BT Sport, said:
“We are absolutely thrilled to have secured some superb matches for the start of the 2014/15 season. On the opening day of the season, all eyes will be on Louis van Gaal fresh from the Netherlands’ World Cup efforts and the start of his tenure with Manchester United.
We’ll show the current title holders Manchester City four times before October ends, including the fascinating clash with Arsenal, and both teams also meet exclusively live on BT Sport in the FA Community Shield on Sunday, August 10.
We’ll also have plenty of games involving top teams playing each other. One that really catches the eye is when Chelsea travel to Anfield on November 8.”
BT Sport will also show Premier League new boys Burnley, who will welcome Manchester United to Turf Moor on August 30.
