It is already the biggest game of the new season but Saturday’s Manchester derby is also on course to become the most watched live match in top-flight history.

Everything points to the first Premier League showdown between Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola being a record-breaker for global ratings.

The 12.30pm kick-off – the earliest the derby has started for more than 13 years – is poised to capture the largest possible worldwide audience for the game between United and City at Old Trafford, which is being televised from New Zealand to the United States and almost everywhere in between.