After playing eight matches in December, Manchester United are scheduled to play only three this month, with the 2-2 draw at home to Tottenham on the 14th their only Premier League game in January.
Although United twice took the lead against Spurs in front of major new investor Sir Jim Ratcliffe, United fans might not mind the gap in action if it helps their players to find better form than they mustered towards the end of 2023.
United lost five of their eight fixtures in December, ending the year with a 2-1 defeat at Nottingham Forest before winning 2-0 at Wigan Athletic in the FA Cup third round on January 8.
Why are United only playing sporadically in January 2024? When do they feature next and how does their schedule look? The Sporting News provides the details.
MORE: Man United vs Spurs report
Why are Man United not playing this weekend?
The mid-season break in the Premier League, which was agreed in 2018, has returned for the first time since it was introduced for the 2019/20 season.
Three consecutive seasons have been disrupted by a combination of the Covid-19 pandemic and the FIFA World Cup 2022, giving no time for the break to take place.
The two-week break is structured so that Premier League matches are still played every weekend during the period.
So the usual 10 Premier League fixtures were split across the weekends of January 13 and 20. The FA agreed to move FA Cup fifth-round matches to midweek and remove fifth-round replays from the calendar to help ease the congested fixture calendar and improve player welfare.
When do Man United play again?
United next play when they visit fourth-tier Newport County, who beat non-league Eastleigh in a replay, in the fourth round of the FA Cup on January 28th.
Newport previously defeated Oldham Athletic in the first round and another non-league side, Barnet, in the second after a replay.
Man United next match, January fixtures
The game against Newport will take place on the last Sunday of January in a 4.30 p.m local time slot selected for live TV coverage.
United will head to County's modest Rodney Parade stadium, where the hosts will install a temporary stand to increase the capacity by more than 1,000, to a total of 9,000.
| Fixture | Competition | Date | Kickoff time |
| Newport (A) | FA Cup | Jan 28 | 11.30 a.m ET / 4.30 p.m GMT / 3.30 a.m AEDT* / 10 p.m. IST |
* Starts the following day.
MORE: FA Cup 2023/24 schedule
When is Man United's next Premier League game?
United resume their Premier League campaign when they attempt to win for the first time in five top-flight away games at Wolves on February 1.
Erik ten Hag's side have not taken three points on the road since beating Everton 3-0 at Goodison Park on November 26.
Wolves had six of the nine attempts on target and were unfortunate not to earn at least a draw when they lost 1-0 to Raphael Varane's 76th-minute goal at Old Trafford in the season opener for both sides on August 14.
| Fixture | Date | Kickoff time |
| Wolves (A) | Feb 1 | 3.15 p.m ET / 8.15 p.m GMT / 7.15 a.m AEDT* / 1.45 a.m IST* |
* Starts the following day.
Premier League fixtures this weekend
Three of the teams above United before the weekend of January 20 are scheduled to play, including out-of-form Arsenal hosting Crystal Palace, title hopefuls Liverpool heading to Bournemouth and West Ham visiting Sheffield United.
| Fixture | Date | Kickoff time |
| Arsenal vs Crystal Palace | Jan 20 | 7.30 a.m ET / 12.30 p.m GMT / 11.30 p.m AEDT / 6 p.m IST |
| Brentford vs Nottingham Forest | Jan 20 | 12.30 p.m ET / 5.30 p. m GMT / 4.30 a.m AEDT* / 11 p.m IST |
| Sheffield Utd vs West Ham | Jan 21 | 9 a.m ET / 2 p.m GMT / 1 a.m AEDT* / 7.30 p.m IST |
| Bournemouth vs Liverpool | Jan 21 | 11.30 a.m ET / 4.30 p.m GMT / 3.30 a.m AEDT* / 10 p.m IST |
| Brighton vs Wolves | Jan 22 | 2.45 p.m ET / 7.45 p.m GMT / 6.45 a.m AEDT* / 1.15 a.m IST* |
* Starts the following day.