Explained: Why Erik ten Hag will break tradition this season and hold Man Utd press conferences on Thursdays

As a rule, the Red Devils have put their manager in front of the pre-match press pack on a Friday – as upcoming fixtures in the Premier League or FA Cup are discussed. That is no longer possible, meaning that the schedule at Carrington has to be tinkered with.

United are in the process of giving their training base a serious facelift. Some £50 million ($65m), on the back of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s arrival as a stakeholder at Old Trafford, is being invested in giving the Red Devils a building that boasts a “focus on creating a high-performance collaborative environment for players and staff”.

Said refurbishment will eventually deliver a “world-class football facility with a positive culture to support future success”. While that work is carried out, United do not have access to the two media rooms that have been used for press conference activity.

That means Ten Hag will be moved to Thursdays when it comes to press duty, with the Jimmy Murphy Centre being used. With United also in Europa League action this season, that change to the diary will also fall in line with continental competition – with managers looking ahead on that day to their team’s next Premier League fixture.