Manchester United will be looking to extend their winning streak to nine matches, when they face off against Sean Dyche’s Burnley this week.
Manchester United will battle against bottom-half side Burnley in matchweek 24 of the Premier League at Old Trafford on Tuesday night, as they look to continue their excellent start to life under interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Manchester United have won all of their eight matches since the Norwegian took over the reins at the club from Jose Mourinho. This impressive run of form has seen them reduce the gap to the top four to just three points, while they still remain in sixth place, level on points with fifth-placed Arsenal.
The Red Devils’ previous league game ended in a 2-1 win over Brighton & Hove Albion, following which they sent Arsenal crashing out of the FA Cup with a 1-3 triumph in the fourth round this past Friday. And Solskjaer will be hoping that his team will be able to extend the winning run to nine matches on Tuesday night.
Burnley, on the other hand, have managed to turn things around to a certain extent after their terrible start to the season. Sean Dyche’s Clarets sit 16th in the Premier League table, just three points clear of the relegation zone, having been unbeaten in their previous four league outings (W3, D1).
Burnley come into the midweek encounter after having been thrashed 5-0 by Manchester City in the FA Cup this past weekend. And they will be hoping to bounce back and take away at least a point from Old Trafford and maintain safe distance from the drop zone.
Team News & Tactics
Manchester United
Chris Smalling is inching closer towards a return, as he continues to recover from a foot injury. However, Marouane Fellaini and Marcos Rojo remain unavailable for the midweek encounter. Having made quite a few changes to the side for the FA Cup tie against Arsenal, Solskjaer is expected to shuffle his pack once again on Tuesday.
First-choice goalkeeper David De Gea is set to return in goal after Sergio Romero started the cup tie on Friday night. There are likely to be a couple of alterations in defence as well, with Diogo Dalot likely to start at right-back ahead of Ashley Young, while Phil Jones could replace Eric Bailly. Victor Lindelof and Luke Shaw should start again.
Scott McTominay starred for Manchester United U23s against PSG U23s this past weekend, but that is unlikely to earn him a starting berth on Tuesday. Fred too is unlikely to get a look in, as Solskjaer is expected to stick with the preferred trio of Nemanja Matic, Ander Herrera and Paul Pogba in the middle of the park against the Clarets.
Alexis Sanchez and Romelu Lukaku impressed in the win against Arsenal, but are expected to drop out to the bench with Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford set to take up their places. Jesse Lingard, who was on the scoresheet in the cup game, should start on the right flank, with Rashford leading the line.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): De Gea; Dalot, Lindelof, Jones, Shaw; Herrera, Matic, Pogba; Lingard, Rashford, Martial;
Burnley
The visitors will go into the game without former Manchester United man Robbie Brady, who injured his groin against Manchester City at the weekend. Full-back Matthew Lowton is also unlikely to be fit for the tie, while Johann Berg Gudmundsson and Phil Bardsley will undergo a late fitness test to determine their availability.
Former Manchester United goalkeeper Tom Heaton is set to start between the sticks for Burnley, replacing Nick Pope who started the cup tie. Charlie Taylor played as a right-back at the weekend and is likely to continue doing so in the absence of Lowton and Bardsley, with Stephen Ward taking up the left-back slot. James Tarkowski and Ben Mee should start at the centre.
With Berg Gudmundsson a doubt for the game, Irishman Jeff Hendrick is likely to slot in on the right flank as he has done in recent fixtures, while young Dwight McNeil, who was on United’s books early in his career, will start on the left side of the midfield. Ashley Westwood and Jack Cork will man the centre of the park for the Clarets.
Chris Wood is expected to feature from kick off in attack, having not started against the Cityzens. He is likely to be partnered by Ashley Barnes, with summer signing Matej Vydra dropping to the bench.
Probable Lineup (4-4-2): Heaton; Taylor, Tarkowski, Mee, Ward; Hendrick, Westwood, Cork, McNeil; Barnes, Wood;
Betting Odds
Favourable Bets
Both Teams to Score – NO @ 1.80
Under 10.5 Corners @ 1.80
Underdog Bets
Penalty in the Match – YES @ 3.40
Key Stats
- Since losing their first ever Premier League meeting against them in August 2009, Manchester United are unbeaten in their last eight against Burnley (W5 D3), keeping six clean sheets in that time.
- Burnley are winless in their last 19 away games against United in all competitions (D7 L12), since winning 5-2 in a top-flight game in September 1962.
- Manchester United have a higher win rate in games played on Tuesdays (62.5%) than any other side in Premier League history, winning 30 of their 48 such matches.
- Burnley are unbeaten in their last four league matches (W3, D1), their longest undefeated sequence since a six-match streak between February and April 2018.
- Ole Gunnar Solskjaer can become the first manager to begin his reign at a club with seven successive Premier League victories. He is currently level on six wins with Pep Guardiola (at Manchester City in 2016) and Carlo Ancelotti (with Chelsea in 2009).
Player to Watch
Marcus Rashford (Manchester United)
The 21-year-old has been in sensational form for Manchester United of late and has been one of the main driving forces behind their exceptional run of results under Solskjaer. Rashford, so far this term, has scored 8 goals and set up 6 more in 20 Premier League matches.
However, the Englishman hasn’t scored or assisted a single goal in his two matches against the Clarets and was sent off in the reverse fixture at the Turf Moor earlier this season. He will be keen on opening his account against Burnley on Tuesday.
Rashford has scored in his last four Premier League appearances for the Red Devils. And should he score against the Clarets, he would become the third youngest player to score in five games in a row in the English top-flight, behind Nicolas Anelka in 1998 and Jose Antonio Reyes in 2004.
Prediction
Manchester United 2-0 Burnley
Manchester United are in a great run of form heading into the Tuesday’s game, having won eight matches in a row, beating the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal along the way. Solskjaer’s arrival has sparked a massive turnaround of fortunes and the players are looking completely revitalized.
Burnley too have managed to pick up some impressive results in recent weeks and were on a five-game unbeaten streak across all competitions, until they were hit for five goals by Manchester City in the FA Cup this past weekend.
The reverse fixture between the two teams ended in a 0-2 victory for United, but the Clarets have managed to hold the Red Devils to draws on both their previous visits to Old Trafford. However, given the vein of form that the home side are in, they should come out on top on Tuesday night and make it nine wins in nine under Solskjaer.
