Manchester United will entertain Manchester City at Old Trafford on Wednesday night on the back of a disastrous 4-0 defeat against Everton last weekend. The Red Devils need to bounce back but it won’t be easy as they will face off against a Man City team on the verge of retaining their Premier League crown.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men are in dire need of putting in a solid display in midweek so a win versus the Citizens could be precisely what the doctor ordered at Manchester.
Talking Tactics
Solskjaer is expected to opt for a 4-3-1-2 formation so that the Red Devils match up with their rivals well in every position of the pitch while also being a threat on the counter. The home team will have enough talent up top to find the back of the net with Marcus Rashford, Romelu Lukaku and Jesse Lingard set to make up the Man United frontline.
The Citizens will lineup in a 4-3-3 formation with Sergio Aguero spearheading Pep Guardiola’s attack up front. The visitors should have enough quality in midfield to dictate play and dominate the game from the get-go.
Team News
Manchester United
Luke Shaw will be back for this game after serving out his two-match ban. However, Eric Bailly, Phil Jones and Ander Herrera are all major doubts for this Manchester derby. Either Romelu Lukaku or Anthony Martial could be dropped for this match following their dismal display away at Everton last weekend.
Manchester United Predicted XI: David De Gea, Diogo Dalot, Victor Lindelof, Chris Smalling, Luke Shaw, Scott McTominay, Nemanja Matic, Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Marcus Rashford, Romelu Lukaku
Manchester City
Kevin De Bruyne is a significant doubt for this midweek fixture as he will be in a race against time to be fit for this clash. However, Pep Guardiola doesn’t have any other injury concerns to deal with ahead of this derby.
Manchester City Predicted XI: Ederson, Kyle Walker, John Stones, Aymeric Laporte, Benjamin Mendy, Fernandinho, David Silva, Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva, Raheem Sterling, Sergio Aguero
Key Men
Manchester United
When Pogba plays well, then the Red Devils are quite hard to stop. Hence, the Frenchman’s performance on the night could determine how Man United fare against their rivals, Man City at the Theatre of Dreams.
Rashford is also in dire need of finding the back of the net so that he can gradually transform himself into a prolific goal-scorer in the Premier League.
Manchester City
Both Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero need to be at their best so that Man City can score the goals to get the all-important three points on Wednesday night. The defensive duo of Laporte and Stones will be responsible for restricting the likes of Rashford, Pogba and Lingard from scoring in midweek.
Odds
Manchester United win – 13/2
Draw – 18/5
Manchester City win – 4/9
