Friday Night Football: What to expect from Jeff Stelling and Rachel Riley in Premier League’s inaugural end of week show

FRIDAY night will be a little slice of Premier League history when Manchester United take on Southampton.

That’s right, Friday… It’s the first time ever Prem action will be broadcast live under the ‘Friday Night Football’ mantle, with regular games set to continue throughout the 2016-17 season.

But what’s in store for the clash at Old Trafford? SunSport runs down what to expect from the first ever broadcast of the new Sky Sports show.

First of all let’s start with the ‘what’ – as Manchester United will take on Southampton at Old Trafford.

It looks set to be a stunning game, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan just two looking to make their Old Trafford debut, while Paul Pogba is set for his ‘second’ club debut – first in his new stint since his £109million move from Juventus.

The showdown will also be Jose Mourinho‘s first ever home Premier League game as United boss.

However, Saints will be looking to spoil the party in Manchester after winning this clash 1-0 last season, thanks to a Charlie Austin goal on January 23 – seven minutes into his club debut.

Tune into Sky Sports 1 at 6.30pm for over four hours of action, including the game itself, with the show hosted by Soccer Saturday favourite Jeff Stelling and United fan Rachel Riley.

You’d expect nothing less of this duo, but they are promising to bring the fun back to live football broadcasting.

On their debut showing on Friday, Riley, 30, said: “I can’t wait. I was watching Liverpool v Arsenal in the pub on Sunday with a pint but Friday night is just the perfect time to watch football.

“It is going to be mostly about [the fun].

“Don’t get me wrong, we’ve still got pundits and analysis but we want you to watch, relax and enjoy the fun features with a pint.

“It will be fluid, we will discuss the football when it is right, we will have fun when the time is right to do so.”

Riley also added that there will be guests for the live show – big-name, football-mad stars, no less.

She said: “We will have guests on from the entertainment world and they will be part of the whole show from 6.30pm.

“But they won’t be just anyone, they have to know the game, that is important.”

For example, in Friday’s clash, Thierry Henry will join the duo to interview Paul Pobga.

Meanwhile, avid Hartlepool fan Stelling has urged Riley to put her loyalty to United aside… At least a bit, for his sake.

He said: “The hardest thing about Friday night is Rachel Riley is a Manchester United fan and I’ve got to try and control her.

“But Friday night will be excellent. You finish work, get in and put the football on and we have got everything happening with Pogba, Zlatan and Jose.

“But Southampton, as I keep reminding Rachel, will play their part too.

“I live about ten miles from there and they have a good record at Old Trafford. They have won there the last two seasons.”

However, Stelling was quick to reaffirm Riley’s point – that Friday will be about the fun – but he won’t be asking his Soccer Saturday buddies to join him.

When asked about a possible appearance for Paul Merson and Co, he said: “Oh no! We want this to be fun! I see enough of them on Saturdays.

“In all seriousness, I think you are more likely to see the good looking ones on a Friday.

“I’m talking about messrs Henry, Carragher and Redknapp. And also, if I say the names Kamara and Tubes, you will know what I mean.”

There will be a massive TEN outings for Friday Night Football – with the next showing on September 16 when Chelsea host Liverpool.

So all in all, what can viewers expect? Only time will tell for sure, but for now, think Monday Night Football, meets Soccer Saturday, meets Soccer AM…