Upon their return to the Champions League this season, Manchester United are being forced into a major change to their third kit. The Red Devils looked worlds away from returning to the pinnacle of football a little over six months ago, while still being spearheaded by Ruben Amorim.

But their fortunes soon changed when Michael Carrick took over from him in January, with United finishing third in the Premier League, prompting Sir Jim Ratcliffe to have no choice but to brandish the retired midfielder – one of the most underrated players in English topflight history – a permanent deal.

The club will now be eager to keep the good times rolling, with the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era only now looking to be on a steady upward trajectory. However, they will have to do so with a change to their cream ‘three-pronged’ third shirt in some matches.

Why Man Utd Must Make Change To Third Kit in Champions League Matches

The standout feature of United’s third shirt (as seen above) is the retro-looking crest and Snapdragon logo being centralised, a unique look that has received widespread praise amongst fans.

However, while the shirt will be worn in domestic competition this term, reportedly including the season opener away at Hull City, UEFA rules mean that the ‘Snapdragon’ word mark will be added to shirts for any Champions League matches it is worn in.

This is due to strict UEFA Equipment Regulations, which state that main front-of-shirt sponsor branding must remain consistent across all registered match kits (home, away, and third).

The Meaning Behind United’s Third Kit Revealed

Reuters/Jason Cairnduff

Earlier this month, Adidas design director Inigo Turner gave an insight into the design of the kit, which was worn for the first time during United’s recent pre-season clash against AC Milan in Poland, which saw Carrick’s side fall to a 4-2 defeat. “Now, there’s a story behind those [colours] too,” he said on Inside Carrington.

A building that formed part of the inspiration for the colour choice is the famous Salford Lads and Girls Club, a youth club that’s helped generations of children by offering activities such as sport and music, with the venue being very closely linked to The Smith.

“The colour palette is really inspired by the geographical location, but the story here is about youth and a lot of the youth institutions from Manchester,” added Turner. “So for over 100 years have been youth institutions, principally supporting like the working class communities within the city. These are synonymous with Manchester and we lean into that.”

Aston Villa are back working on a new midfielder deal as they look to bolster the middle of the park ahead of a big season. Villa still want more depth in the middle despite replacing Youri Tielemans, and former Tottenham loanee Joao Palhinha looks to be the chosen target.

Villa competed well in the UEFA Super Cup during the week, narrowly losing to back-to-back Champions League winners PSG, but Unai Emery knows he likely needs more depth for his side to achieve another top four Premier League finish while also having a good run in the Champions League.

Villa have already addressed their midfield, with Joao Gomes and Johan Manzambi signed, but they could do with a midfielder who is more defensive-minded after the loss of Amadou Onana to a likely season-ending injury.

Bayern Munich midfielder Palhinha looks to be the priority, and GIVEMESPORT understands that Villa remain in talks over a deal to land the midfielder. Discussions have continued even after Bayern threw out the idea of a loan without any promise of a future transfer.

Villa now know they will either have to buy the midfielder or agree to an obligation to buy hooked onto to a loan deal.

Bayern are said to be asking for €30million this summer, which works out at £25.6million, but there have been suggestions a deal can be done a little below that figure.

Bayern paid £47.4million for the Portugal international, but it did not work out for him in Germany. Since then, he has impressed on a loan spell for Spurs, arguably standing out as one of their best players last season. Tottenham could have signed him permanently due to an option to buy, but they instead decided to go out and spend up to £185million on Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes.

Palhinha’s 2025/26 Premier League stats

• Appearances: 33
• Goals: 5
• Assists: 2
• Pass success: 82%
• Aerial duels won: 1.1 per game
• Tack;es: 3.3 per game
• Interceptions: 0.9 per game
• Clearances: 1.8 per game

Palhinha’s rave reviews

via Reuters

Spurs boss De Zerbi said of Palhinha last season: “Palhinha is one of the best, as a player for sure, but as a guy. I want to see players with the same passion, the same attitude, the same spirit and the same personality. We are lucky to have him with us.”

Former Fulham boss Marco Silva said while Palhinha was still in his squad: “He’s one of the best midfielders in Europe at what he does.”

Former Fulham teammate Andreas Pereira added: “João is a beast. He wins everything in midfield, and that gives us freedom to play. He’s very important for how we want to play — aggressive, pressing, strong.”

Manchester United are said to be working on a new contract for star man Bruno Fernandes in a bid to keep potential suitors at bay. Fernandes is the reigning Premier League Player of the Season, but at 31 years of age, there are always going to be rumours of an exit, with clubs sensing an opportunity to due to his relatively short contract and age.

The Portuguese superstar is only under contract until next summer as things stand, and there has been talk of Galatasaray coming forward with a lucrative offer. But United have a plan, still firmly behind Fernandes after he proved he is still at the top of his game last season, playing a central role in United finishing in third place, which represented a clear step forward from recent campaigns.

via Reuters

Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano said on his YouTube show: “Man Utd have offered a new contract to Bruno Fernandes already at the end of May because Man Utd knew that Galatasaray, for example, but also clubs from Europe, top clubs from Europe, wanted to try to tempt Bruno Fernandez. Man Utd decided to stop all the conversations by offering a new deal to Bruno. So Man Utd really want him to stay.

“The current deal of Bruno Fernandes at Manchester United is valid until June 2027, one more season plus an option to extend – club option to extend. So, Man Utd feel protected, but Man Utd still want to give Bruno the feeling of confidence with a new contract. So, the conversation is ongoing. We have to follow the situation. For sure is going to be an important negotiation for United. The return of Marcus Rashford in terms of salaries internally is an important return because the salary of Marcus Rashford is a huge salary. So, obviously, this is part of the conversation.

“The length of the contract, the salary Bruno has a release clause in his contract United currently. So is this clause going to stay or not? So this is the conversation with Bruno Fernandes and his agent but Manchester United are on it, definitely. So we will be following that situation.”

The length of the contract could well be pivotal, given Fernandes’ age. The midfielder is likely to want a couple of years tacked on to his existing deal, rather than just one, but United will want to protect themselves in case his decline begins within the next year or two, which is pretty likely given his age.

Fernandes’ Premier League stats 2025/26

• Appearances: 35
• Goals: 9
• Assists: 21
• Shots: 2.4 per game
• Pass success: 82.2%
• Key Passes: 3.9 per game

Carrick on whether Fernandes wants to stay

REUTERS/Dylan Martinez

United boss Carrick was asked if Fernandes would stay towards the end of last season. He responded: “I’ve got no reason to think otherwise. We’ve loved what he’s done and he loves being here, I think you can see that. He wanted to stay on the pitch, he wants to stay on every single game because he’s enjoying his football, which is fantastic.”

Speaking about Fernandes last season, Man Utd legend Roy Keane said: “He’s the best in the world at picking those passes. 99 times out of 100 he will pick the right pass with the right weight.”