The international break came at a bad time for Manchester United.
Erik ten Hag's side were in fine fettle having won four games on the spin in the Premier League. The latest of those came earlier this month when Arsenal were seen off comfortably at Old Trafford in a 3-1 success.
Next up is the enticing prospect of a Manchester derby at the Etihad this weekend. United will be hoping to hit the ground running and to quickly re-find their momentum after a break of almost a month when you factor in the aforementioned international games and matches that were postponed as a result of the Queen's death.
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We've looked back over the last six seasons at United's record in their first match following an international break.
That period saw three men at the helm: Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick albeit the latter was only in charge on an interim basis.
Mourinho lost just one of 11 games following the international break. He won three and drew seven, making them especially hard to beat in the first fixture after returning from duty. In total he took 16 points out of a possible 33 (average of 1.45 points-per-game).
As for Solskjaer, he oversaw an impressive six wins, two draws and two losses from ten post-international break matches. That gives him a slightly better return of 20 points from a possible 30 (average of 2 points-per-game).
Rangnick's only game following a mid-season break was the 1-1 draw with Leicester City in April this year.
Overall, since the start of the 2016-17 campaign United have won nine, drawn 10 and lost just three of 22 league matches played immediately after an international break.
Ten Hag will be aiming to extend that impressive record at the Etihad on Sunday.
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