The 2016–17 season was Manchester United’s 25th season in the Premier League, and their 42nd consecutive season in the top-flight of English football. It began against Leicester City in the FA Community Shield, with United prevailing 2–1 to win the first trophy of the domestic calendar. In February 2017, the club won their second trophy of the campaign, beating Southampton 3–2 in the EFL Cup Final. Although they missed out on qualifying for the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League via the league, having finished in sixth place, a 2–0 victory over Ajax in the 2017 UEFA Europa League Final meant they qualified for the Champions League group stage as Europa League title holders.
Following the departure of Louis van Gaal at the end of the previous season, the club signed former Porto, Chelsea, Internazionale and Real Madrid manager José Mourinho on a three-year contract, with the option of a further year.
Pre-season and friendlies
| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A |
Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 July 2016 | Wigan Athletic | A | 2–0 | Keane 49′, Pereira 58′ | 13,314 |
| 22 July 2016 | Borussia Dortmund | N | 1–4 | Mkhitaryan 59′ | 38,285 |
| 25 July 2016 | Manchester City | N | A–A | Match cancelled due to adverse playing conditions | |
| 30 July 2016 | Galatasaray | N | 5–2 | Ibrahimović 4′, Rooney (2) 55′, 58′ (pen.), Fellaini 62′, Mata 74′ | 30,200 |
| 3 August 2016 | Everton | H | 0–0 | 58,597 | |
| 4 June 2017 | Michael Carrick XI | H | 2–2 | Vidić 28′, Carrick ’82 | 70,027 |
FA Community Shield
| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A |
Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 August 2016 | Leicester City | N | 2–1 | Lingard 32′, Ibrahimović 83′ | 85,437 |
Premier League
| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A |
Scorers | Attendance | League position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 August 2016 | Bournemouth | A | 3–1 | Mata 40′, Rooney 59′, Ibrahimović 64′ | 11,355 | 1st |
| 19 August 2016 | Southampton | H | 2–0 | Ibrahimović (2) 36′, 52′ (pen.) | 75,326 | 1st |
| 27 August 2016 | Hull City | A | 1–0 | Rashford 90+2′ | 24,560 | 2nd |
| 10 September 2016 | Manchester City | H | 1–2 | Ibrahimović 42′ | 75,272 | 3rd |
| 18 September 2016 | Watford | A | 1–3 | Rashford 62′ | 21,118 | 7th |
| 24 September 2016 | Leicester City | H | 4–1 | Smalling 22′, Mata 37′, Rashford 40′, Pogba 42′ | 75,256 | 6th |
| 2 October 2016 | Stoke City | H | 1–1 | Martial 69′ | 75,251 | 6th |
| 17 October 2016 | Liverpool | A | 0–0 | 52,769 | 7th | |
| 23 October 2016 | Chelsea | A | 0–4 | 41,424 | 7th | |
| 29 October 2016 | Burnley | H | 0–0 | 75,325 | 8th | |
| 6 November 2016 | Swansea City | A | 3–1 | Pogba 15′, Ibrahimović (2) 21′, 33′ | 20,938 | 6th |
| 19 November 2016 | Arsenal | H | 1–1 | Mata 68′ | 75,264 | 6th |
| 27 November 2016 | West Ham United | H | 1–1 | Ibrahimović 21′ | 75,314 | 6th |
| 4 December 2016 | Everton | A | 1–1 | Ibrahimović 42′ | 39,550 | 6th |
| 11 December 2016 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 1–0 | Mkhitaryan 29′ | 75,271 | 6th |
| 14 December 2016 | Crystal Palace | A | 2–1 | Pogba 45+2′, Ibrahimović 88′ | 25,547 | 6th |
| 17 December 2016 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 2–0 | Ibrahimović (2) 5′, 56′ | 26,308 | 6th |
| 26 December 2016 | Sunderland | H | 3–1 | Blind 39′, Ibrahimović 82′, Mkhitaryan 86′ | 75,325 | 6th |
| 31 December 2016 | Middlesbrough | H | 2–1 | Martial 85′, Pogba 86′ | 75,314 | 6th |
| 2 January 2017 | West Ham United | A | 2–0 | Mata 63′, Ibrahimović 78′ | 56,996 | 6th |
| 15 January 2017 | Liverpool | H | 1–1 | Ibrahimović 84′ | 75,276 | 6th |
| 21 January 2017 | Stoke City | A | 1–1 | Rooney 90+4′ | 27,423 | 6th |
| 1 February 2017 | Hull City | H | 0–0 | 75,297 | 6th | |
| 5 February 2017 | Leicester City | A | 3–0 | Mkhitaryan 42′, Ibrahimović 44′, Mata 49′ | 32,072 | 6th |
| 11 February 2017 | Watford | H | 2–0 | Mata 32′, Martial 60′ | 75,301 | 6th |
| 4 March 2017 | Bournemouth | H | 1–1 | Rojo 23′ | 75,245 | 6th |
| 19 March 2017 | Middlesbrough | A | 3–1 | Fellaini 30′, Lingard 62′, Valencia ’90+3 | 32,689 | 5th |
| 1 April 2017 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 0–0 | 75,397 | 5th | |
| 4 April 2017 | Everton | H | 1–1 | Ibrahimović 90+4′ (pen.) | 75,272 | 6th |
| 9 April 2017 | Sunderland | A | 3–0 | Ibrahimović 30′, Mkhitaryan 46′, Rashford 89′ | 43,779 | 5th |
| 16 April 2017 | Chelsea | H | 2–0 | Rashford 7′, Herrera 49′ | 75,272 | 5th |
| 23 April 2017 | Burnley | A | 2–0 | Martial 21′, Rooney 39′ | 21,870 | 5th |
| 27 April 2017 | Manchester City | A | 0–0 | 54,176 | 5th | |
| 30 April 2017 | Swansea City | H | 1–1 | Rooney 45+3′ (pen.) | 75,271 | 5th |
| 7 May 2017 | Arsenal | A | 0–2 | 60,055 | 5th | |
| 14 May 2017 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 1–2 | Rooney 71′ | 31,848 | 6th |
| 17 May 2017 | Southampton | A | 0–0 | 31,425 | 6th | |
| 21 May 2017 | Crystal Palace | H | 2–0 | Harrop 15′, Pogba 19′ | 75,254 | 6th |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Liverpool | 38 | 22 | 10 | 6 | 78 | 42 | +36 | 76 | Qualification for the Champions League play-off round |
| 5 | Arsenal | 38 | 23 | 6 | 9 | 77 | 44 | +33 | 75 | Qualification for the Europa League group stage |
| 6 | Manchester United | 38 | 18 | 15 | 5 | 54 | 29 | +25 | 69 | Qualification for the Champions League group stage |
| 7 | Everton | 38 | 17 | 10 | 11 | 62 | 44 | +18 | 61 | Qualification for the Europa League third qualifying round |
| 8 | Southampton | 38 | 12 | 10 | 16 | 41 | 48 | −7 | 46 |
FA Cup
| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A |
Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 January 2017 | Round 3 | Reading | H | 4–0 | Rooney 7′, Martial 15′, Rashford (2) 75′, 79′ | 74,396 |
| 29 January 2017 | Round 4 | Wigan Athletic | H | 4–0 | Fellaini 44′, Smalling 57′, Mkhitaryan 74′, Schweinsteiger 81′ | 75,229 |
| 19 February 2017 | Round 5 | Blackburn Rovers | A | 2–1 | Rashford 27′, Ibrahimović 75′ | 23,130 |
| 13 March 2017 | Round 6 | Chelsea | A | 0–1 | 40,801 |
EFL Cup
| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A |
Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 September 2016 | Round 3 | Northampton Town | A | 3–1 | Carrick 17′, Herrera 68′, Rashford 75′ | 7,798 |
| 26 October 2016 | Round 4 | Manchester City | H | 1–0 | Mata 54′ | 74,196 |
| 30 November 2016 | Round 5 | West Ham United | H | 4–1 | Ibrahimović (2) 2′, 90+3′, Martial (2) 48′, 62′ | 65,269 |
| 10 January 2017 | Semi-final First leg |
Hull City | H | 2–0 | Mata 56′, Fellaini 87′ | 65,798 |
| 26 January 2017 | Semi-final Second leg |
Hull City | A | 1–2 | Pogba 66′ | 16,831 |
| 26 February 2017 | Final | Southampton | N | 3–2 | Ibrahimović (2) 19′, 87′, Lingard 38′ | 85,264 |
UEFA Europa League
Group stage
| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A |
Scorers | Attendance | Group position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 September 2016 | Feyenoord | A | 0–1 | 31,000 | 4th | |
| 29 September 2016 | Zorya Luhansk | H | 1–0 | Ibrahimović 69′ | 58,179 | 3rd |
| 20 October 2016 | Fenerbahçe | H | 4–1 | Pogba (2) 31′ (pen.), 45+2′, Martial 34′ (pen.), Lingard 48′ | 73,063 | 2nd |
| 3 November 2016 | Fenerbahçe | A | 1–2 | Rooney 89′ | 35,378 | 3rd |
| 24 November 2016 | Feyenoord | H | 4–0 | Rooney 35′, Mata 69′, Jones 75′ (o.g.), Lingard 90+2′ | 64,628 | 2nd |
| 8 December 2016 | Zorya Luhansk | A | 2–0 | Mkhitaryan 48′, Ibrahimović 88′ | 25,900 | 2nd |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Fenerbahçe |
6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 6 | +2 | 13 | Advance to knockout phase |
| 2 |  Manchester United |
6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 4 | +8 | 12 | |
| 3 |  Feyenoord |
6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 7 | −4 | 7 | |
| 4 |  Zorya Luhansk |
6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 8 | −6 | 2 |
Knockout phase
| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A |
Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 February 2017 | Round of 32 First leg |
Saint-Étienne | H | 3–0 | Ibrahimović (3) 15′, 75′, 88′ (pen.) | 67,192 |
| 22 February 2017 | Round of 32 Second leg |
Saint-Étienne | A | 1–0 | Mkhitaryan 16′ | 41,492 |
| 9 March 2017 | Round of 16 First leg |
Rostov | A | 1–1 | Mkhitaryan 35′ | 14,223 |
| 16 March 2017 | Round of 16 Second leg |
Rostov | H | 1–0 | Mata 70′ | 64,361 |
| 13 April 2017 | Quarter-finals First leg |
Anderlecht | A | 1–1 | Mkhitaryan 36′ | 20,000 |
| 20 April 2017 | Quarter-finals Second leg |
Anderlecht | H | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Mkhitaryan 10′, Rashford 107′ | 71,496 |
| 4 May 2017 | Semi-finals First leg |
Celta Vigo | A | 1–0 | Rashford 67′ | 26,202 |
| 11 May 2017 | Semi-finals Second leg |
Celta Vigo | H | 1–1 | Fellaini 17′ | 75,138 |
| 24 May 2017 | Final | Ajax | N | 2–0 | Pogba 18′, Mkhitaryan 48′ | 46,961 |
Squad statistics
| No. | Pos. | Name | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Other | Total | Discipline | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |  |
 |
|||
| 1 | GK |  David de Gea |
35 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 45 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 3 | DF |  Eric Bailly |
24(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 37(1) | 0 | 7 | 2 |
| 4 | DF | Phil Jones |
18 | 0 | 1(1) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25(1) | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 5 | DF |  Marcos Rojo |
18(3) | 1 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 8(2) | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 35(6) | 1 | 5 | 0 |
| 6 | MF |  Paul Pogba |
29(1) | 5 | 1(1) | 0 | 4 | 1 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 49(2) | 9 | 10 | 0 |
| 7 | FW | Memphis Depay |
0(4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0(3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1(7) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | Juan Mata |
19(6) | 6 | 2(1) | 0 | 3 | 2 | 9(1) | 2 | 0(1) | 0 | 32(9) | 10 | 5 | 0 |
| 9 | FW |  Zlatan Ibrahimović |
27(1) | 17 | 0(1) | 1 | 4(1) | 4 | 9(2) | 5 | 1 | 1 | 41(4) | 28 | 8 | 0 |
| 10 | FW | Wayne Rooney (c) |
15(10) | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3(1) | 0 | 4(3) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 25(14) | 8 | 9 | 0 |
| 11 | FW | Anthony Martial |
18(7) | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2(1) | 2 | 4(6) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 28(14) | 8 | 3 | 0 |
| 12 | DF | Chris Smalling |
13(5) | 1 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 8(2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29(7) | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | MF | Jesse Lingard |
18(7) | 1 | 1(1) | 0 | 2(2) | 1 | 6(4) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 28(14) | 5 | 6 | 0 |
| 15 | MF |  Adnan Januzaj |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | MF | Michael Carrick (vc) |
18(5) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4(1) | 1 | 5(2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 30(8) | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 17 | DF | Daley Blind |
21(3) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2(1) | 0 | 10(1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 35(5) | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 18 | MF | Ashley Young |
8(4) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3(4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15(8) | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 19 | FW | Marcus Rashford |
16(16) | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3(3) | 1 | 8(3) | 2 | 0(1) | 0 | 30(23) | 11 | 3 | 0 |
| 20 | GK | Sergio Romero |
2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | MF | Ander Herrera |
27(4) | 1 | 2(1) | 0 | 6 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 44(6) | 2 | 13 | 2 |
| 22 | MF |  Henrikh Mkhitaryan |
14(9) | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 10(1) | 6 | 0(1) | 0 | 29(11) | 11 | 4 | 0 |
| 23 | DF | Luke Shaw |
9(2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 17(2) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 24 | DF | Timothy Fosu-Mensah |
1(3) | 0 | 1(1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1(3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4(7) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 25 | MF |  Antonio Valencia |
28(1) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8(1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 41(2) | 1 | 7 | 0 |
| 27 | MF | Marouane Fellaini |
18(10) | 1 | 2(1) | 1 | 0(5) | 1 | 7(3) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 28(19) | 4 | 9 | 1 |
| 28 | MF | Morgan Schneiderlin |
0(3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1(1) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 3(5) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 31 | MF |  Bastian Schweinsteiger |
0 | 0 | 1(1) | 1 | 0(1) | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1(3) | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | GK | Sam Johnstone |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 35 | MF | Demetri Mitchell |
1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | DF |  Matteo Darmian |
15(3) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26(3) | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 38 | DF | Axel Tuanzebe |
4 | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 39 | MF |  Scott McTominay |
1(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1(1) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 40 | GK |  Joel Castro Pereira |
1 | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 43 | DF | Cameron Borthwick-Jackson |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 44 | MF |  Andreas Pereira |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 46 | FW | Josh Harrop |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 47 | MF | Angel Gomes |
0(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| — | — | Own goals | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 0 | – | 1 | – | 0 | – | 1 | – | – |