Manchester United have received a boost as their next Premier League match against Burnley begins this weekend.
The Red Devils are in terrible form with a 3-1 defeat to Brighton, making it three defeats in four home games.
Erik ten Hag’s side will look to get off to a winning start to their Champions League campaign when they face Bayern Munich on Wednesday.
But United will then face a rapid turnaround, with the Premier League trip to Burnley taking place just three days later.
Why is Burnley-Man United at 8pm?
This match was moved for television purposes after being selected for broadcast by TNT Sports.
The event was originally scheduled to take place on the same day at 3pm, but was not moved to TNT’s main slot of Saturday’s 12.30pm kickoff.
This is because the Premier League agreed last season that clubs playing in Europe on Wednesday nights should not play at the start of the weekend.
TNT’s compromise was to consider different kick-off times instead of dropping selected matches, as was the case when Manchester City beat Newcastle 1-0 after winning the Super Cup last month.
And with United away to Munich on Wednesday, the only slot available to play Burnley was at 8pm on Saturday. Sky Sports occupies the 5.30pm slot, screening Brentford against Everton, with TNT looking to maximize its audience by avoiding a clash of fixtures
Andrew Georgiou, chairman of Discovery’s sports arm, told the Times:
“We’re happy with the 12.30 kick-off that we bought as part of the package, but the reality is that the clubs and the league have agreed that if there was a club plays on Wednesday evening in the Champions League, he will not be able to play at kick-off on Saturday at 12.30.
“Saturday at 12.30 is perfect for us, it’s our time slot. Unfortunately the Premier League and the clubs have agreed that if this happens the match will not be able to start at 12.30pm so we will have to find another slot.
“I don’t think we can ask ourselves to change our choices. What we need to do is understand what the best time slot is to meet the club’s needs and our needs in terms of the matches we will choose.
“I don’t think we should expect to change our choices based on who’s playing on Wednesday night.”
