Manchester United look to continue its upwards surge in the Premier League when they host an in-form Leicester City side at Old Trafford on Sunday. Last Word on Football tries to put together the Manchester United Predicted Lineup for what is expected to be a thrilling game which Erik ten Hag’s side will be desperate to win.
Manchester United Predicted Lineup vs Leicester City
How Manchester United Have Lined-up Recently
Erik ten Hag’s side has been one of the best-performing teams in the Premier League since the season restarted after the Qatar World Cup break. In their nine league games since the end of December, they’ve won six of them and only lost once. The last time they lost a home game was in their first game of the season when they lost to Brighton & Hove Albion.
A reason behind United’s impressive consistency is because Ten Hag appears to have found the right formula. He’s also rotating his options well and the majority of the backline of Diogo Dalot, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, and Tyrell Malacia – who helped get a clean sheet against Leeds United last weekend – should start this one too. Lisandro Martinez has been a staple under Ten Hag and should come back into the team for this after missing out on the Barcelona clash on Thursday.
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In midfield, United’s options are limited so Bruno Fernandes, Fred, and Marcel Sabitzer will need to put up their socks for the occasion. Marcus Rashford is undroppable, while Jadon Sancho and Alejandro Garnacho have also impressed in recent games and have been able to feature quite heavily. They’re expected to play as the Red Devils hope to torment Leicester with their blazing pace.
Manchester United Recent Form And Tactics
Since suffering the loss to Arsenal on January 22, the Red Devils have been unbeaten in their last seven games across all competitions. That involves five wins as well as a fighting draw to La Liga leaders Barcelona at Camp Nou in their Europa League knockout round first leg in mid-week.
Ten Hag has made the Red Devils enjoyable to watch again this season and has given the players a sense of rejuvenated confidence to play at their very best. Using a staple 4-3-3 formation, his system asks one midfielder to sit back and help the backline in progressing the ball forward smoothly.
Fred and Fernandes often operate as hovering no.8’s, often moving to the wings to allow the wingers to get into central areas and stretch the opposition backline – helping them create more space in the final third. Rashford has arguably been the best player under Ten Hag and definitely the one to have benefitted the most from his change.
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Marcus plays with utmost swagger and has the freedom to move into central areas as well as hover around in look of more scoring chances. Sancho is slowly starting to rediscover his groove but still needs to be more accurate with his final product. Garnacho is a real livewire and extremely rapid in getting the ball into the box from wide areas, but he can be slightly wasteful with his fishing too.
United need to employ their fast-paced and quick passing style to outwit Leicester at Old Trafford. Brendan Rodgers’ side can be mean to break down, which means Ten Hag has to get his players to be unpredictable and decisive with their build-up play. They also need to be careful of the attacking threat which the Foxes boast of.
Leicester has some quality attacking players who are ruthless and rapid in counter-attacks, as well as having a major threat in set-piece situations. That means the defenders need to be on their guard all the time to close down any empty space to frustrate the visitors. With the roar of the Old Trafford crowd behind them, United will likely play inspiring attacking football on Sunday and will need to take their chances clinically to get another win.
Manchester United Injuries to Consider
Antony and Scott McTominay are tipped to return to full training soon but are still not guaranteed to feature in this game. Anthony Martial is still injured, while Christian Eriksen and Donny van de Beek are out for a long time.
Manchester United Predicted Lineup
David de Gea, Diogo Dalot, Harry Maguire, Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw, Fred, Marcel Sabitzer, Bruno Fernandes, Jadon Sancho, Alejandro Garnacho, Marcus Rashford
