Good afternoon! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for today's pre-season clash between Manchester United and Galatasaray in Sweden! The new campaign is fast approaching for both of these sides, and today's game will be a valuable chance to edge further towards match fitness as both clubs look to improve on disappointing campaigns last time out. Before we get into all that, though, let's take a look at the team news, and a special homecoming for one debutant in particular...

MANCHESTER UNITED STARTING XI: De Gea; Valencia, Bailly, Blind, Shaw; Schneiderlin, Herrera, Mkhitaryan, Rooney, Martial; Ibrahimovic

MANCHESTER UNITED SUBS: Johnstone, Romero, Darmian, Jones, Rojo, Carrick, Fellaini, Lingard, Mata, Memphis, Young, Rashford

While we wait for Galatasaray's squad to come through, let's first have a look at that United selection. The headline news is, of course, the inclusion of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who will make his first ever appearances for the club this evening in his home country. The 34-year-old may have arrived on a free transfer, but he is the one United fans have been looking forward to seeing most of the summer arrivals - and that could even extend to after Paul Pogba joins the club. Ibrahimovic missed the tour of China due to his involvement in Euro 2016, but he makes his long-awaited debut for the Red Devils here.

There is little doubt that United are getting a world-class player in Ibrahimovic, even at his age. Indeed, he seems to be getting better with age having registered the first 50-goal season of his career last term, bowing out from a hugely successful four-year spell at PSG in style. He scored a phenomenal 156 goals in 180 appearances for the Ligue 1 outfit and could fire United right back to the top of English football. Certainly, it is hard to look past his record down the years, with the Swede having picked up 13 league titles in his last 15 seasons as a professional.

Ibrahimovic's fellow summer arrivals Eric Bailly and Henrikh Mkhitaryan also start this afternoon having been part of the China tour too, with the latter opening his account for the club against former side Borussia Dortmund last time out. He is joined in a fierce looking trio behind Ibrahimovic that also contains Martial and Rooney - both back in the squad after their post-Euro 2016 breaks - and that is a front four that will strike fear into most defences in the Premier League this season.

Indeed, we may well be seeing United's first-choice XI under Mourinho for the first time here. David de Gea is another who returns to the side following a Euro 2016 break, and even with the likes of Zlatan, Rooney and Mkhitaryan the Spaniard can still lay a big claim to being the club's most important player. That has certainly been the case in recent seasons, and it is fair to say that without De Gea is such good form last term, United would not have made such a strong challenge for the Champions League places.

Interestingly, Blind returns to the heart of the defence today having played in midfield against Dortmund, and the centre-back partnership is perhaps the biggest question regarding Mourinho's first-choice side this season. Smalling would expect to be in there, but is absent today due to injury, while Bailly should also feature often following his big-money arrival. The fit-again Jones, as well as Blind, will also be competing for a place, though, so there is plenty of competition there. The same is true in midfield with the likes of Carrick, Fellaini, Herrera and Schneiderlin in the middle of the park, although Schweinsteiger does look to be heading for the exit. Lest we forget the looming shadow of Paul Pogba too...

Valencia and Shaw keep their places as full-backs this afternoon, while in front of them you would expect Mkhitaryan and Martial to be the first choice wingers. Even in that position, though, Mourinho has plenty of choice, and the likes of Lingard, Mata, Memphis and Young only make the bench this evening. The United squad look so flimsy and threadbare at times under Louis van Gaal last season, but three new arrivals have made it look like a pretty formidable side with plenty of depth.

GALATASARAY STARTING XI: Muslera; Linnes, Chedjou, Hakan, Carole, Selçuk, Dzemaili, Yasin, Sneijder, Bruma, Sinan

GALATASARAY SUBS: Cenk, Eray, Salih, Sabri, Gökay, Birhan, Berk İsmail, Emrah, Serdar Aziz, Hamit Altıntop, Donk

As for Galatasaray, their most noteworthy player comes in the form of Wesley Sneijder, who was heavily linked with a move to Manchester United a few years ago before eventually completing his switch to the Turkish outfit. At times it look certain that he would move to Old Trafford, and in hindsight he may be wishing that the move did go through. He has had trouble with Galatasaray this summer after the club fined him an extortionate amount for picking up 10 bookings last season, with the whole situation threatening to get ugly with legal action.

Sneijder's agent claimed that his client was being bullied out of the club, but the Dutchman refused to leave and he is expected now to still be a Gala player at the start of the new season. He played under United boss Jose Mourinho at Inter Milan so will be looking forward to a reunion today, but there is no place for former Arsenal frontman Lukas Podolski. He is still on his break after Euro 2016, where he represented Germany, so the Turkish outfit will be without last season's top scorer for this game.

The season ahead is a huge one for Manchester United, and they have spared no expense in trying to get back to the top of English football. They have been a shadow of their former selves since Sir Alex Ferguson stepped down, with David Moyes's ill-fated tenure being following by the tumultuous reign of Louis van Gaal. That eventually came to an end this summer, despite Van Gaal steering the club to FA Cup glory, and the Red Devils showcased their intent by bringing in three-time Premier League winner Jose Mourinho as his successor.

One of the biggest criticisms of Van Gaal was his negative style of play, and while Mourinho didn't exactly forge a reputation as a free-flowing manager during his time with Chelsea, it is very hard to argue with his pedigree. Certainly, his presence is sure to have played a part in the likes of Bailly, Mkhitaryan and Ibrahimovic deciding to join a club who will not be playing Champions League football in the upcoming season, and all of that has combined to see last season's fifth-placed team leap up to second favourites to win the title.

Unlike previous seasons, United have conducted their business quickly for the most part this summer. The signing of Ibrahimovic dragged out a little due to Euro 2016, but they had their first three arrivals - 75% of what Mourinho wanted - relatively quickly. The remaining 25% has not been so straightforward, though, with the well-publicised Paul Pogba saga continuing to drag out. The Frenchman looks certain to return to Old Trafford for a world-record £100m fee, just four years after leaving on a free transfer, but the big question is when it will happen.

Pogba certainly has the potential to develop into a truly world-class player, but a lot of pressure will come with being the world's first £100m pressure, and it will be interesting to see how he deals with that. It is an eye-watering amount of money to splash on a single individual, but considering Ibrahimovic's shirt sales made £76m in the first week alone then it could prove to be decent business if he helps to restore the club to their former glories. They have already improved their squad significantly this summer, and the arrival of Pogba will only serve to make them better.

The signs are positive off the field, then, but on the pitch it hasn't been quite as good for United during pre-season. They eased to a 2-0 victory over Wigan Athletic in Mourinho's first match at the helm, but they then came up against Borussia Dortmund and were comfortably swept aside by the German outfit. Granted, Dortmund were further along in their preparations, but the way they cut through the United defence at times was very un-Mourinho like. That was the opening match of their tour of China, and it proved to be their one and only outing too as the scheduled Manchester derby against Pep Guardiola's City was called off due to adverse weather conditions in Beijing.

After today's match they will face Everton in a testimonial for Wayne Rooney, who will incidentally start to new season sitting just four goals short of Sir Bobby Charlton in the all-time United goalscorers list. The Red Devils then take on Leicester City in the Community Shield at Wembley on August 7 before kicking off their new Premier League campaign away to Bournemouth on Sunday, August 14.

Improvement will be the bare minimum for United during the upcoming season after they only managed a fifth-placed finish last term, missing out on the Champions League due to goal difference. There was nothing wrong with their defence - indeed, no team conceded fewer than their 35 goals - but at the other end of the field there were big problems. They scored just 49 goals - the worst tally in the top eight - and that was a big reason behind both their final position and Van Gaal's departure. With the attacking players at their disposal now, it is hard to imagine them being so shy in front of goal this season.

United are not the only side who suffered a disappointing 2015-16 campaign, with Galatasaray also slumping to a sixth-placed finish in the Super Lig. Gala had won their record 20th league title the season before and went into the campaign as champions, but despite a relatively promising start, things soon went downhill and they never looked like retaining their crown. They finished 28 points off eventual champions Besiktas and were consigned to their lowest finish since coming eighth in 2010-11.

The pressure on Manchester United to get rid of Van Gaal throughout last season was huge, but they kept faith with the Dutchman right through to the end. Galatasaray, on the other hand, went through four managers during the 2015-16 campaign, and that instability must have had a negative impact on the team. Hamza Hamzaoglu started the season in charge, and may have felt hard done by to get the sack just three months in having steered the team to six wins and only two defeats in the opening 11 games of the season.

Hindsight proves that to be a mistake on Gala's part, with neither Mustafi Denizli, caretaker boss Orhan Atik or current manager Jan Olde Riekerink managing to turn the ship around before the end of the season. Indeed, Riekerink got off to a particularly poor start with no wins in his first four league games and only one in his opening seven. He finished the season well with back-to-back victories, but his record at the end of the campaign, as far as the league is concerned, stood at an unspectacular three wins, three draws and three defeats.

More parallels can be drawn to United, though, as they coupled a disappointing league season with victory in the domestic cup, beating bitter rivals Fenerbahce 1-0 in the final. That would have been enough to see them qualify for the Europa League, again like United, but they were banned from European competition due to breaches of financial rules and so will not participate on the continent this term. Last season's European performance wasn't particularly impressive, though, with Gala finished third in the Champions League groups before crashing out at the first time of asking in the Europa League.

Those financial punishment may well be the reason why Galatasaray have not been particularly busy this summer, with Serdar Aziz and Emrah Bassan the most notable new arrivals at the club. They have sold Alex Telles and Jose Rodriguez, while the situation with Sneijder remains a little murky. Certainly, you wouldn't expect a club to fine their star player a seven-figure sum for picking up 10 yellow cards if they didn't have one eye on forcing him out.

This will be Galatasaray's fourth match of pre-season, and the come into the game defending an unbeaten record so far. They began with victory over Zurich by a comfortable 3-0 scoreline before being held 1-1 by Young Boys. Their most recent outing came on Tuesday against AGF, and it was another comfortable victory for the Turkish outfit as they ran out 3-1 winners, making it seven goals scored and just two conceded in their three pre-season games so far.

Even during their poor campaign last term, Gala still managed to score a lot of goals, with only champions Besiktas beating their tally of 69. However, they had the worst defence in the top eight of the table, which is something they will need to improve ahead of the new season. It won't be easy against this United attack, though, while things get no easier with Atletico Madrid next up. They will then face Besiktas in the Super Cup before beginning the new league season at home to Karabukspor.

PREDICTION: Right, we're 10 minutes from kickoff at the Ullevi Stadium in Gothenburg, which means that it is time for a prediction! United have named a very strong team for this one, while Galatasaray are nowhere near their best right now. United may be a little short on match practice compared to their opponents, but with the superior quality at their disposal I can see Mourinho's men pulling off a 3-1 victory here, with Zlatan to score.

These two sides have met six times in competitive matches before, with Man United losing just one of those. The first three clashes all ended as draws, during which time Galatasaray knocked the Red Devils out of Europe on away goals, but after that the Premier League side won the next two 4-0 and 1-0.

Galatasaray's sole victory did come in their most recent meeting with United, though, back in the Champions League group stages four years ago. Burak Yilmaz got the only goal of the game early in the second half in Istanbul to hand Gala the victory, avenging their defeat by the same scoreline at Old Trafford in September. Michael Carrick was the scorer in that first game.

As big a draw as Manchester United are as a club, it will be all eyes on Zlatan Ibrahimovic today. The Swede seems to write his own scripts, and making his United debut in his home country seems to be another part of that. It will be fascinating to see how he does with the new challenge of the Premier League, but if his recent seasons are anything to go by then he could even come close to living up to his own billing in Manchester.

We're just a couple of minutes away from kickoff here in Gothenburg, where the Ullevi Stadium is bathed in sunshine. There are a decent amount of Galatasaray fans here, but the vast majority are in the red of Manchester United.

KICKOFF: Here we go then! Ibrahimovic's first touch as a United player comes as he kicks us off in his home country!

Ibrahimovic has only had a couple of touches so far, but each one has been cheered to the rafters so far.

Who else? I said Zlatan writes his own script, but even this would have been a bit too perfect for anyone to foresee. Ibrahimovic scores inside four minutes of his Manchester United debut, and he does so in trademark fashion with an acrobatic scissor kick. Valencia delivers the cross a bit behind the striker, and although he doesn't catch it cleanly, the ball bounces past the keeper and into the corner. What a start to his career at the club!

It's hard to imagine a more Zlatan start than that, isn't it? Maybe if he had smashed it into the top corner, but that is being pernickety. A vintage Ibrahimovic goal within four minutes of his debut, in his home country? United fans will hope that it is a sign of things to come.

United have been pretty much in complete control of this match from the first whistle. They have seen the vast majority of the ball, have not been threatened defensively and, of course, have that goal.

No chances to speak of since that early goal, but United are looking comfortable. Galatasaray are seeing more of the ball now, but it is all coming in front of the United defence.

United win a corner and, while the first delivery comes to nothing, they keep the ball alive and it almost falls for Martial on the edge of the box, but he can't connect with his shot.

Decent spell of possession from Galatasaray as they knock the ball about comfortably, but every time they try to venture into the United third they are quickly pushed back. They just don't have a cutting edge at the moment.

A near two-minute spell of possession from Galatasaray comes to an end with them not having made any serious ground or come close to threatening the defence. They don't seem to have any of the required quality to break this United defence down.

United break forward down the left flank and the ball is played in to Rooney around 25 yards from goal. The ball bounces up very invitingly for the captain, but he turns down the shot in favour of looking for Herrera, but his pass is cut out.

We've had 20 minutes in Gothenburg so far, and still Zlatan's scissor kick is all that separates the two sides. We haven't seen any goalmouth action aside from that in truth, but I imagine the headlines will have already been written.

Just as I say that, Galatasaray level things up with their first effort of the game! It is far too easy for them too as he escapes his marker to latch on to a free kick, glancing his header past De Gea having been left unmarked at the back. It is poor defending from United, and out of nothing we are all square!

It may take a little more than that equaliser to steal the show from Ibrahimovic, though. The debutant got United's goal in trademark style after just four minutes, and here it is in all its glory...

Aside from the two goals, it must be said that there hasn't been much to shout about in this game so far. The goals have provided the only shots so far, which is not a stat that the goalkeepers will be particularly proud of.

Good pressure from United here as they win a couple of corners in quick succession, looking to regain their advantage over the Turks. Both set pieces come to nothing, though.

YELLOW CARD! Just before those corners, Wesley Sneijder picked up the first yellow card of the evening for a heavy challenge on Herrera. He'll be racking up another fine at this rate!

Galatasaray seem content to just take their time knocking the ball about amongst themselves here. They have the equaliser now and they have no real urgency to make anything else happen right now.

As I say that, Galatasaray up the tempo and break into the United bos, but Bailly shows good pace and power to shrug one man off the ball and emerge with possession. He doesn't clear his lines, though, and it takes another block from the summer signing to prevent De Gea having something to do.

SAVE! De Gea is forced into his first save of the contest as Sneijder lets fly from range, but it will need to be a really special strike to beat him from there and De Gea reacts to tip it over the top.

The likes of Mkhitaryan, Rooney and Martial have all been pretty quiet in this one so far, and even Ibrahimovic has with the exception of that goal. It will, of course, take them a bit of time to gel, but that bicycle kick looks a little like a false dawn in this particular match.

SHOT! We have a rare shot! It comes from Rooney as the ball drops to him just outside the box, and this time he can't resist having a go. He sends a dipping volley towards goal, but it flies off target.

Galatasaray have turned this game around! They take the lead with five minutes remaining of the first half, and it is a really smart goal too. Bruma is the man who gets it, playing a one-two to move to the edge of the box before picking out the bottom corner with aplomb. De Gea was helpless, and it is advantage Gala!

Well, after five minutes the script could not have been going much better for United, but 35 minutes later and it isn't looking great at all. The only real action Muslera has had to do is pick the ball out of his net after Ibrahimovic opened the scoring, and Galatasaray have actually been the better side for the majority of this first half.

Galatasaray almost gift a goal straight back to United as Muslera almost sells a teammate short with a pass, but it is hacked behind for a corner before Ibrahimovic can capitalise.

The first half comes to an end at the Ullevi Stadium, then, and it is Galatasaray who have the lead over Jose Mourinho's Manchester United. Things started so well for the Premier League side, but they failed to build on that and, in truth, Galatasaray deserve their lead at the interval. It hasn't been a match blessed with lots of goalmouth action, but we have still seen three goals and it is the Turks who have the advantage.

United made a perfect start to the match, and it looked to be going exactly to the script when Ibrahimovic opened the scoring after less than four minutes. As if that seemed too perfect to be true, the fact that it came in trademark fashion made it an even more memorable introduction for the Swede. Valencia's cross was a little behind the striker, but he produced an acrobatic volley and, while he didn't connect with it perfectly, he got enough on it to see it past the keeper.

Galatasaray were back level midway through the half, though, and it was all far too easy for the Turkish outfit. Sneijder whipped a free kick into the box and Sinan Gumus lost his marker easily to race into the box and glance an unmarked header past De Gea. It was the type of goal that Mourinho will be furious with, particularly if it happens in a competitive match.

Galatasaray then took the lead with just five minutes remaining of the half, and this time it was more a case of fluid attacking play than poor defensive play. Bruma was the architect and the scorer, advancing forward before playing a one-two with Gumus and curling his finish into the bottom corner. De Gea had no chance, and that was enough to see Galatasaray take the lead into the break.

There have been very few chances aside from the goals, in truth, but the best ones have fallen to Galatasaray too. De Gea was called into action twice in quick succession, first to tip Sneijder's long-range strike over the top before denying Yasin Oztekin's header smartly from the resulting corner.

KICKOFF: Galatasaray get us back underway for the second half here, and there have been a raft of changes at the break. I will try to get them all to you as soon as possible!

MAN UTD SUBS: Jose Mourinho has made five changes at the break, with Lingard, Fellaini, Carrick, Young and Rashford all coming on. Ibrahimovic, Herrera, Mkhitaryan, Martial and Schneiderlin make way.

GALATASARAY SUBS: Galatasaray also made a couple changes at the interval, with Hamit Altintop and Serdar Aziz coming on.

United have made a bright start to this second half, with the subs immediately upping the tempo in their play. Young in particular has been heavily involved so far in the opening stages.

YELLOW CARD! Rooney becomes the second player in the book today, and the first from United, for a scything challenge having lost the ball. No complaints there, even in a friendly.

Gumus almost earns himself a good chance with a smart turn into the box, but not for the first time in this match Bailly shows good strength to step across his man and deal with the danger.

Manchester United level things up 10 minutes into the second half, and it is the captain who has the goal. It is good build-up play as Rashford slides a pass inside the full-back for Valencia, who reaches the byline before cutting the ball back into the middle. Rooney has made the run into the box and just steers it into the corner to restore parity.

Rooney makes it two goals in three minutes to put United back in front from the spot, although the credit all has to go to Rashford. The youngster shows brilliant pace to latch on to Rooney's ball over the top, beating Aziz in the area before cutting inside and going down under the challenge of the keeper. The defence simply could not deal with Rashford there, and the referee had little choice but to point to the spot. Rooney steps up and drills his effort down the middle to double his personal tally.

This has been a very promising opening 15 minutes to this second half for United. They are playing at a much better tempo than they were in the first half, and the sight of Ibrahimovic and Rooney on the scoresheet will be one United fans are looking forward to seeing a lot this season.

It is a three-goal blitz from United as they take complete control of this match. Fellaini gets in on the act this time, looping his header over the keeper and into the far corner from Valencia's cross. Rashford's pace once again caused the initial problems before he this time held the ball up and eventual the ball was stood up for Fellaini to finish at the back post.

SAVE! De Gea is called into action again here, but this is a comfortable stop from the keeper to deny Oztekin's flick towards goals.

It is hard to see any way back for Galatasaray in this match now after that spell of three goals in the space of seven minutes. This has been a much improved second-half display - who needs Zlatan?!

MAN UTD SUBS: Another string of subs from United as De Gea, Bailly, Blind, Shaw, Valencia and Rooney make way to be replaced by Romero, Darmian, Jones, Rojo, Mata and Memphis.

We have 20 minutes remaining in this match now, and Mourinho will be hoping that those latest six changes don't affect his side's rhythm as they had been pretty impressive in the second half so far.

Good play from United as first Memphis races forward down the left flank before playing the ball in to Mata, who flicks it into the path of Rashford. However, United can't get a shot away and Gala get it clear.

United get a fifth to put this game well and truly to bed, and it is Mata who gets it this time. A low ball arrives from the right and Memphis is waiting behind Mata should he miss it, but the Spaniard slides in to steer it past the keeper from close range.

It has been one-way traffic in this second half. United lacked much of an attacking threat in the first half, but it has been exactly the opposite in the second and they deserve to be so comfortably in front right now.

Mourinho may have some thinking to do after this match. The starting XI tonight didn't look as though it would be far from the one that starts the opening Premier League game of the season, but United have performed much better since the half-time subs.

Lingard is a little late on Altintop, catching the sub on the top of his foot to concede a free kick in a decent crossing position. They don't lift it into the box, however, instead playing it short.

United are starting to enjoy themselves now, and they look like they could well add to their lead in these closing stages. Galatasaray seem to have almost given up.

GALATASARAY SUBS: A couple more changes for Galatasaray as Sabri and Unsal come on.

Just a few minutes remain in this match now, and overall Mourinho will be pleased with what he has seen from his side. The first half was far from ideal, but at the end of the day they have won comfortably and Ibrahimovic has got his first goal for the club. A job well done, I'd say!

There will be a couple of minutes stoppage time at the end of this match.

Manchester United finish their pre-season tour with a victory, then, and in the end it is an emphatic one too. Things didn't look great when they trailed at half time, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic's debut goal after four minutes being cancelled out by Sinan Gumus and Bruma. However, United scored three goals in the space of seven second-half minutes to regain control of the game, with Wayne Rooney's brace being added to by Marouane Fellaini. Juan Mata then capped off the scoring with 15 minutes remaining to kill the match off once and for all.

That is all we have time for this evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's match as United end their pre-season tour with a win and a Zlatan Ibrahimovic goal to boot. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction from the United camp. From me, though, it is goodbye for now!