Manchester United will jump into the top four if they win at Villa Park this Sunday, leapfrogging Newcastle in the process. But can Erik ten Hag’s men do it?
The Red Devils failed to impress in their forgettable mid-week outing against Real Sociedad and fans will be hoping for a more entertaining, free-flowing spectacle this weekend. Despite winning 1-0 the match left United second in their Europa League group and disappointed.
Now, United are looking to regain some momentum and positivity with a win over newly Steven Gerrard-less Aston Villa, who have lost three of their last five.
How will Manchester United line-up?
Bruno Fernandes picked up his fifth booking of the season mid-week. Having played every single minute of Premier League football so far, his absence presents Erik ten Hag with a head-scratcher. Who will replace him in the midfield?
Donny van de Beek did little to impress in Spain this week, after being given a chance in the starting line-up. He failed to impact the game and was subbed off an hour into the match.
Unfortunately, Raphael Varane remains out through injury. The French international was forging an impressive partnership with Lisandro Martinez and is a big miss for United. In his place, Victor Lindelof will likely partner Martinez as he did in the Socided tie.
Whether or not Ronaldo will start remains a bone of contention but for our money, all of United’s best performances this season took place without him in the starting line-up.
Jadon Sancho, Anthony Martial and Antony are all doubts for this weekend’s game, though Antony’s injury was reported as “not serious” by the manager. If Antony can start, we expect United to line up something like this.
Opposition
Aston Villa are more than a little hard to predict at the moment. Since parting ways with Steven Gerrard the Midlands club has dished out one four-nil thrashing to Brentford, before suffering one themselves at the hands of Eddie Howe’s Newcastle United.
Against Brentford, Villa showed they can carry a real goal threat, but they’re far from consistent at the moment and struggling for any real form. They’ve only won one of their last five games.
Notably, Ashley Young will make a return to Old Trafford as the experienced head in a Villa side seeking some stability. We expect them to line-up like this:
Aston Villa: Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Mings, Young; Dendoncker, Luiz, Buendia; Bailey, Watkins, Ings
Prediction
We’re hoping Manchester United will overcome the absences of Fernandes and Varane and take an important 2-0 win at Villa Park, moving into fourth place in the Premier League.
Marcus Rashford’s fine form can continue and we wouldn’t be surprised to see him score another important goal.