After a win against Tottenham, Manchester United will look keep some consistency against a Jekyll and Hyde Crystal Palace side. Manchester United will, unfortunately, be without their flamboyant winger Mkhitaryan which would see Juan Mata take his place. The return of Bailly could prove beneficial against Palace who have scored 11 goals in their last three games, thereby being a battle of offence vs defence. United will have to be wary of three important factors in order to beat Palace.
Wilfred Zaha
The former Manchester United winger is in blistering form and the United defenders might have a hard time. United will have to be careful and the best option is to close him down while the defenders will have to be careful in not conceding a penalty through reckless tackles because it’s what players like Zaha are capable of.
Christian Benteke
The striker is having a brilliant season following his move to Palace after an unsuccessful spell at Liverpool. He’s managed 8 goals in 13 games so far and has fitted in seamlessly in Pardew’s setup. The Belgian will be looking to add to this tally and cause problems for the United defence.
The absence of Mkhitaryan and Valencia
This is essentially United’s power house on the right and could hit them badly. Mkhitaryan suffered an injury after a tackle from Danny Rose while Valencia will miss out due to a suspension. United could’ve guaranteed a win with the duo on the right but this could see Blind or Shaw walk into the side, thereby shifting Darmian to his original position.
Manchester United will have to pick up from where they left. Ibrahimović will look to leave a mark on the scoresheet while Pogba and Herrera will look to cause problems from the centre. Juan Mata will most probably replace Mkhitaryan and his creativity will come to the fore. Palace have been leaky defensively and Mata will find openings in the porous Palace defence.
Rojo and Jones will have to be at their peak to stop the rampage of Zaha and Benteke. This doesn’t seem so bad but the duo on their day are capable of causing problems to any defence. Fortunately for United, Bailly has returned and in all likelihood, he’ll start the next game.
The players have been doing exceptionally well, but the lack of being clinical has cost them games. However, the hope lies that lady luck will not disturb them for long. Palace have been shambolic in defence and this will be an open invitation for United to score. All in all, it must be a good game provided things go their way.
