Predicted Chelsea lineup (4-2-3-1) vs Manchester United, Barkley and Abraham start

Chelsea will make the trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in their opening game of the new Premier League season.

The Blues could not pursue new recruits in the transfer market due to the ban, but manager Frank Lampard has still been able to find young players within the club, who could add more freshness to the team ahead of the season opener.

Formation: 4-2-3-1

Predicted Lineup:

Spain international Kepa Arrizabalaga has been the regular between the sticks since joining the Blues from Athletic Bilbao last year. He will be expected to start in goal against the Red Devils.

The backline could remain the same from the recent friendly game at Borussia Monchengladbach. Cesar Azpilicueta, Andreas Christensen, Kurt Zouma and Emerson should make up the four-man defence.

Lampard is expected to make a late call on the fitness of N'Golo Kante, who managed just 20 minutes of pre-season following a knee concern. Should the Frenchman feature from the bench, Jorginho will be paired alongside Mateo Kovacic, who was signed on a permanent basis from Real Madrid earlier in the summer.

In the attack, Lampard is likely to go with a young-looking combination with Willian just returning after a hamstring concern while Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ruben Loftus-Cheek continue their rehabilitation following their respective Achilles injuries.

Pedro, Ross Barkley and Christian Pulisic seem the most likely trio to feature behind the main striker. Tammy Abraham may lead the attack ahead of both Olivier Giroud and Michy Batshuayi with Lampard affording him with more gametime than the duo during the final two pre-season games.