Premier League opening day fixtures simulated as Manchester United and Man City discover first opponents

The fixtures for the 2023/24 Premier League campaign will be released at 9am on Thursday morning, meaning Manchester City and Manchester United will soon discover their respective schedules.

Fixture release day is one of the most highly anticipated dates in the football calendar and it marks the beginning of the countdown to the start of the new season. The 2023/24 Premier League campaign is scheduled to kick off on Saturday, August 12, though it is highly likely that the opening game will be on Friday, August 11 for television purposes.

Supporters of all 20 clubs will be eagerly anticipating the release of their respective schedules and will be paying close attention to who they will face first. Supporters will also, no doubt, be paying close attention to their Boxing Day fixture and who they will face on the final day.

For City, who defeated West Ham United 2-0 on the opening day this season, they will be looking to hit the ground running at the start of next term and start the defence of their Premier League crown with a bang. United, meanwhile, will be hoping to start next term a lot better than they started this season, following two defeats in their opening two games, being beaten by both Brighton & Hove Albion (2-1) and Brentford (4-0).

READ MORE: Declan Rice has sent a United transfer reminder to Harry Kane

But until the fixtures are officially released by the Premier League on Thursday morning, it remains a mystery as to who will be facing who on the opening day of the campaign. Nevertheless, ahead of the official release, MEN Sport has run a simulation of might be produced for the opening round of fixtures. The simulator came up with a tough opening assignment for City and a favourable one for United.

The