The wait is finally over as Premier league kicks off this weekend. All eyes are on Manchester United as they welcome Fulham at Old Trafford.
The Red devils will be eager to get off to a good start after their disastrous campaign last year. The English giants finished 8th in the league and the fans labelled it as an all time low for the prestigious club. The team has been slammed for losing 14 league games! Erik Ten Hag’s team was the worst team defensively as they conceded 58 goals, having a negative goal difference. This performance has been labelled “embarrassing” by the United faithful.
This summer the new partial owners INEOS, led by Sir Jim Ratcliffe have backed manager Erik Ten Hag financially. The Red Devils have been very active this transfer window signing lots of reinforcements. The club have added teen center back Leny Yoro along with Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui to bolster their defence. They have also added young and talented midfielder Joshua Zirkzee from Bologna. These new signings should improve the United backline and midfield. The fans and pundits are expecting to see a revolutionary season this year from Manchester United.
Fulham on the other hand, over achieved their expectations last season as they finished 13th in the league. The Cottagers dealt a massive blow last season as they lost their top scorer Mitrovic to Al Hilal. This season the board has increased the transfer budget to help the manager improve the results even further. They have added Jorge Cuenca from Villareal and the blockbuster signing of Emile Smith Rowe from Arsenal. The Fulham faithful hope that the manager will be able to fill the holes left by the departures of Joao Palhinha, Tosin Adarabioyo and Bobby De Cordova-Reid.
Match Predictions: Can the Cottagers sting the Red devils!
Man United boss Erik Ten Hag is under immense pressure to deliver results this season. The club has roughly given the manager a budget of £200m and expect results in return. Failing to do so, will result in him losing his job.
Manchester United have shown significant improvement in their pre season friendlies. Bruno Fernandes has excelled in the number nine role given to him by the manager. Marcus Rashford also looks much better in shape, he was making brilliant runs through Man City‘s defence in the Community Shield final. The Englishman will be keen on proving his doubters wrong this season. Defenders Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez have also looked like a formidable pair guarding the backline.
Fulham have also been decent in their preseason campaign. New signing Emile Smith Rowe has been linking up with Adama Traore beautifully. Midfielder Alex Iwobi has also looked sharp and is the backbone of the Cottagers midfield. However, the team needs a holding midfielder. This could prove to be a major weakness for the London club this season.
The Red devils have improved their midfield and backline by a significant margin. Erik Ten Hag’s men also have the home advantage to help them. The Red Devils should be able to overcome this challenge. Manchester United are favorites to snatch 3 points tomorrow by a narrow margin.
However, no one should not sleep on Fulham. The Cottagers are known to stun stronger oppositions often and produce surprise results.
The Red devils are expected to keep more possession of the ball and create multiple chances. Fulham must be compact defensively and try to keep their shape throughout 90 minutes. They will aim to hurt Man United on the break.
Expected lineups: Man United v Fulham
Predicted Man United XI: Onana; Dalot, Maguire, Mazraoui, Martinez; Casemiro, Mainoo; Amad, Fernandes, Garnacho; Rashford
Leny Yoro, Rasmus Hojlund, Luke Shaw and Malacia are out injured. De Ligt is expected to come on from the bench and make his Man United debut tomorrow.
Predicted Fulham XI: Leno; Castagne, Diop, Bassey, Robinson; Lukic, Iwobi; Traore, Pereira, Smith Rowe; Muniz
£34m signing Emile Smith Rowe is expected to be handed his first competitive debut for the Cottagers. Raul Jimenez is likely to feature as a substitute.
Kickoff time: 8:00 pm local time, 12:30 am IST.
Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester U.K
Streaming on: Sky Sports tv in the U.K, Disney Hotstar and Star Sports in India.
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