After what has been a pretty tough week for Manchester United, the Red Devils host Southampton once again in the Premier League. Let’s have a look at what we might expect to see in this game.
Opposition
Southampton come into this game with some pretty decent form. Four wins, one loss and one draw make up their last six matches. They are currently sat at 10th in the league table with a total of 28 points. The last time the Saints journeyed up to Old Trafford they came away with a record-breaking 9-0 defeat. I don’t think anyone expects such a result this time around however. With a lot less injuries on Hasenhüttl’s part and United coming into this game off the back of some disappointing results to say the least. We could be set for a tough game for Rangnick and his team.
Hasenhüttl has tended to favour the Rangnick-style 4-2-2-2 formation or as it is sometimes deployed the 4-4-2. This will no doubt start with Forster in net. A centre-back partnership of Jan Bednarek and Mohammed Salisu. With Valentino Livramento at right-back and Kyle Walker-Peters as left-back. In the two central midfield positions I think we will see Oriol Romeu partnering James Ward-Prowse. As for the wider more creative areas, this is where I think we will see the deployment of Adam Armstrong and Mohamed Elyounoussi. And then a strike partnership of Che Adams and Armando Broja completes the side.
After beating Tottenham in a five-goal thriller just a few days ago, the Saints could come into this game with some added confidence. In those periods when United could lose concentration Southampton could look to pounce and punish this United team. The only question is over whether they can put in such strong performances back to back with such little time between games.
Manchester United
Again this game has become something of a must-win for Rangnick and his team. With the race for that final position becoming ever closer, Manchester United need to start capitalising on what have been some pretty decent performances that just haven’t led to three points. Ultimately, if Manchester United aren’t playing in the Champions League next season then we could be in some serious issues. With players out of contract and the need for reinforcements, Champions League football will be a massive draw for top quality players. Hopefully, we can seal the deal by securing top four this season.
With that in mind here’s how I think Rangnick will line his team up with the 4-3-3 formation. Starting with David de Gea in net. At centre-back we will definitely see Raphael Varane, partnering him I would like to see Victor Lindelöf. With recent mistakes from Harry Maguire this might the time to drop him. Diogo Dalot will most likely return at right-back. With Telles potentially still out for covid, Luke Shaw will most likely return at left-back.
In the midfield we have seen the trio of McTominay, Bruno and Pogba work quite well. The creativity that the duo of Pogba and Bruno will give the team can create enough chances for our forward players. Hopefully, the front three can put away these chances and score some goals. I think Jadon Sancho has been looking really sharp lately and even in these disappointing results he has shone. Anthony Elanga could return on the left, after missing out on most of the game against Burnley. And then Cristiano Ronaldo should return up top after being dropped midweek against Burnley.
Score Predictions
Ultimately, this team should create enough chances to beat Southampton. The team, on paper, also has the finishing quality to be putting those chances in the back of the net. Hopefully we can see a performance where we capitalise on the creativity that having both Pogba and Bruno in the team gives us. With that in mind I am going for a 2-0 United win, hopefully we can keep a clean sheet, control the game and walk away with all three points.