Why Rangers vs Man United is at Murrayfield and not Ibrox as renovations explained

Manchester United are back up north for another friendly and this time it's Rangers they're facing in the capital.

The Old Trafford giants played Lyon at Murrayfield last year and the anticipation for their next visit, which was announced at lunchtime on Wednesday, is building already. United will face off with Rangers for the first time since their Champions League clash in 2010 and it will give Philippe Clement the chance to assess his troops against some of the best in the world on July 20.

The choice of venue though has raised an eyebrow or two. United have been no strangers to a Murrayfield trip in the past and the 67,0000-seater Edinburgh arena is often the chosen setting for Premier League teams when they make the trip north for friendlies. Yet there is a feeling among fans that the game would have had a better atmosphere closer to home for Rangers, at Ibrox.

But that was untenable due to planned work at Ibrox which will rule out any games there for a long period over the summer. The Rangers Review report that, as a result, the friendly with United could be their only friendly in Scotland in the summer months, with trips abroad and down south set to make up the bulk of their pre-season preparations.

In January Rangers announced plans to expand the capacity of the stadium by up to 600 by building a new cantilever at the front of the Copland Road Stand and adding more wheelchair-accessible seats. And while that work is ongoing, Ibrox will not be open for business, with work due to take place between their final home game of this season and their first competitive game of 2024/25 - a window of at least two months in which they hope the renovation works can be complete.

But it does mean a trip to the capital for