Manchester United welcome Everton at Old Trafford today hoping to bounce back to winning ways in the Premier League.
The Red Devils suffered their first league defeat of the season to Aston Villa last weekend, losing 1-0 at home. They weren’t at their best against Villarreal in the Champions League group stage game on Wednesday, yet, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side managed to come back from 1-0 down to win 2-1 at Old Trafford thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo’s injury-time winner.
Solskjaer will expect a much better performance in Saturday’s game when compared to those that came against Aston Villa and Villarreal.
Team News
Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw were forced off with injuries against Aston Villa and subsequently missed Wednesday’s game against Villarreal. While Maguire will be out for a few weeks, Shaw remains touch and go for today with the defender having being pictured with the team at The Lowry Hotel.
Marcus Rashford is believed to be ahead of schedule in his recovery from his shoulder operation, and he along with Amad Diallo, who was spotted training at Carrington on Tuesday, are still a few weeks away and could be available after the international break.
Predicted Man United Lineup vs Everton (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper
David de Gea is back to his best and the team can rely on him once again when the chips are down. He was outstanding against Villarreal, making six saves in United’s dramatic victory. He is a sure-shot starter in the Man United lineup today.
Defence
Aaron Wan-Bissaka is likely to return to the Man United lineup after being suspended for the Villarreal game following his straight red card at Young Boys. He’ll start at right-back.
The left-back spot might see a change if Luke Shaw is not risked with Alex Telles high on confidence after his thunderbolt strike in midweek. But given the importance of the fixture, Ole will give Shaw every opportunity to get fit.
As Harry Maguire has a calf problem, Victor Lindelof is again expected to partner Raphael Varane at the heart of United’s defence and the duo will need to put in a much-improved display compared to the one that came against Unai Emery’s Villarreal.
Midfield
Solskjaer will have a tough call to make for the two central midfield positions against Everton.
Nemanja Matic made an impact in Wednesday’s Champions League game after coming on as a substitute. But Ole heavily prefers Scott McTominay and Fred in the relatively tough games and the Toffees will be no pushovers.
Despite considerable doubts, we are opting for the pair of them to start in central midfield in the Man United lineup.
Matic and Donny van de Beek are further options along with Paul Pogba if Ole decides to play him in midfield.
Bruno Fernandes is an undoubted starter, and with Maguire out injured, he’ll lead the team out of the tunnel once again just like he did in midweek. The Portuguese midfielder will look to link up better with Pogba and Ronaldo this time around and carve open the Everton defence.
Attack
Jesse Lingard made telling impacts against West Ham and Villarreal after coming on as a substitute. Solskjaer could reward him with a start on the left flank, but Paul Pogba seems to be a more secure starter on that flank as of now.
It’ll be a flip of the coin between Jadon Sancho and Mason Greenwood for a place on the right wing. Greenwood has looked far off his best in the last couple of games, making poor decisions on and off the ball but Sancho might have to wait a bit more to be handed a run of starts.
Leading the Man United lineup will be Cristiano Ronaldo, who’ll have a spring in his step after scoring the dramatic injury-time winner against Villarreal.
Edinson Cavani will be waiting in the wings.
