Rio Ferdinand makes scoreline prediction for Premier League clash between Manchester United and Arsenal

Former England defender Rio Ferdinand has predicted a draw between Manchester United and Arsenal in the opening match of the Premier League season. The two sides meet at Old Trafford on Sunday, August 17, with both sides having a new striker leading the attack.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ferdinand went with a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford, a repeat of the result when Manchester United and Arsenal met earlier this year. The Red Devils legend disagreed with his co-host, who predicted that Ruben Amorim's side would lose, and said:

“I’m going draw. I’m going to go score draw. 1-1.”

Theo Walcott was on the It's Called Soccer! Podcast earlier this week and backed Arsenal to pick up all three points. The former Gunner has named Gabriel Martinelli as the lone scorer in the game and said:

“I will go for a 1-0 win for Arsénal and I’m going for a Martinelli goal. I think they’re going to expose United [with a] domination of having the ball and I just think it’ll be a break goal and Arsénal's defence [will be] pretty solid.”

Manchester United are looking to bounce back from their 15th-place finish last season. On the other hand, Arsenal are looking to go over the line after their 3rd successive second-placed finish in the league table.

Rio Ferdinand disagrees with Manchester United legend on ex-Arsenal target

Manchester United have signed Benjamin Sesko this summer, after Arsenal opted against signing the striker despite being heavily linked. Paul Scholes was on The Overlap Fan Debate last week and said he is not happy with the move.

He believes that the Red Devils have gone for another unproven forward, when they need someone who is ready to hit the ground running. Rio Ferdinand has disagreed with the legendary midfielder and backed Sesko to do well, and said on his Rio Presents YouTube channel:

"Now we've got someone who's not as experienced but he's more experienced than Rasmus Hojlund. He's played probably almost double the amount of games as Hojlund when he came, he's two years older than what Rasmus Hojlund was when he signed."

"And he's shown that he can score goals. He hasn't gone and blitzed it and scored a ridiculous amount of goals, but he's a kid. He's young. Again, we can't expect that. I don't see him coming in and scoring 25 Premier League goals, or 20 Premier League goals. If he comes and scores between 10 and 15, I think that's an unbelievable return."

AC Milan are in talks with Manchester United to sign Rasmus Hojlund this summer. The Italian side want a loan with option to buy, while the Red Devils want a straight sale.