Manchester United will play hosts to Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford on Monday night hoping to bounce back from their bitter loss at the hands of Brighton and Hove Albion in the previous gameweek. However, they would come up against a strong Spurs side, who have edged out two wins out of two league matches so far this season. Mauricio Pochettino’s team won’t be any push-overs and is expected to give United a real run for their money in front of their home supporters.
The recent history of this fixture has seen mixed results with both teams winning three and losing three of their past six meetings in all competitions. We can expect another nail-biting encounter on Monday with both sides going all out to secure the three points.
Team News
Manchester United
It is expected that United boss Jose Mourinho would name a similar team that suffered a disastrous 3-2 loss at Brighton and Hove Albion last weekend. The Special One might stick with his favoured 4-3-3 formation and would be sweating on the fitness of Luke Shaw and Alexis Sanchez. However, the Red Devils could be without the services of Sergio Romero, Marcos Rojo, Nemanja Matic, Diogo Dalot and Antonio Valencia for this clash.
Tottenham Hotspur
Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino could tweak his formation from last week’s 3-5-2 against Fulham to a more familiar 4-2-3-1 for Monday night’s encounter at Old Trafford. It is likely that the Argentine manager might start Eric Dier to add more protection to his back four. However, the away side won’t have Heung-min Son and Victor Wanyama available for selection.
Predicted Lineups
Manchester United
David De Gea; Ashley Young, Victor Lindelof, Eric Bailly, Luke Shaw; Fred, Paul Pogba; Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata, Alexis Sanchez; Romelu Lukaku
Tottenham Hotspur
Hugo Lloris; Kieran Trippier, Davinson Sanchez, Jan Vertonghen, Ben Davies; Eric Dier, Mousa Dembélé; Lucas Moura, Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli; Harry Kane
Key Men
Manchester United
Both Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez need to play well and get the goals if the home side are to come away with all three points from this match. However, the focus will once again be on Paul Pogba and whether he can make a significant contribution on the pitch for the Red Devils. David De Gea might be tested by the Tottenham attack as well and so the Spaniard would need to be at the top of his game.
Tottenham Hotspur
Harry Kane needs to repeat his feat from last weekend and find the back of the net against a shaky Man United defence. Spurs would also rely on Davinson Sanchez and Jan Vertonghen to keep it tight at the back and limit United’s chances to a minimum.
Odds
Manchester United win: 6/4
Draw: 21/10
Tottenham Hotspur win: 12/5
