Sport

Defender Kompany, basking in the English sun, sat back as goalkeeper Joe Hart and forward Edin Dzeko poured the ice-cold water over his head.

United winger Nani made a second-half appearance in Saturday’s Premier League opening defeat to Swansea City and appears on the way out under Louis van Gaal.

Man Utd and Chelsea are the only two of the five Premier League winners to defend the competition since it started in 1992, while City’s second-placed finish in 2012/13 was considered a “disaster” by Pellegrini when speaking to the BBC yesterday.

Fletcher said he thought about United’s inexperienced, title-winning 1995/96 squad in the dressing room after the disappointment of Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Swansea City.

Double Olympic gold-winning Adlington, who also claimed two bronze medals at the London 2012 Games, is keen to return the good deeds volunteers did for her when she was training as an elite athlete.

City will be hoping for a similar emphatic result on Sunday to spur them on for a second successive title and overcome the Community Shield disappointment.

Chris Kamara says predicting the winner of the Premier League this season is incredibly difficult with several sides – including a rejuvenated Man Utd – in the hunt.

After a scintillating World Cup summer, Mancunian interests will be turned towards the world’s most lucrative league as rivals City and United gear up for what will be a massive season, in very different respects.

Keith Hill believes he needs a gagging order in his bid to add the two ‘get out of jail free cards’ he needs for his Rochdale deck as he prepares to shuffle his pack for the visit to Chesterfield.

Football commentator and former player Kamara even got his own hands dirty by spraying the Toyota GT 86, which will be given away to one lucky fan and was parked in Spinningfields for the contest between 1-2pm.

Fletcher, who joined the Red Devils as a youth aged 11 in 1995, confidently predicts that with the current side United possess they can well surpass the top four target touted by the pundits.