Manchester United will be looking to cement their place in the table with a win over Newcastle United at Old Trafford this evening.
The Red Devils saw their Premier League title hopes dented after being held to a 1-1 draw at lowly West Bromwich Albion last weekend and they head into this game trailing leaders Manchester City by a whopping 10 points.
Leicester City are now level on points with second-placed United while fifth-placed West Ham could close to within just one point if they beat Tottenham this afternoon so Man Utd need a win to keep themselves ahead of the chasing pack.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men put one foot in the next phase of the Europa League with an impressive 4-0 victory over Real Sociedad on Thursday night so the Norwegian coach will be hoping for another positive display against Newcastle.
However, the Magpies head to Old Trafford in desperate need of points as they sit 17th in the table following last weeks defeat at Chelsea so Steve Bruce is under pressure to move them clear of the relegation zone.
Team news
Manchester United will continue to be without Paul Pogba as he’s still nursing a thigh injury while Scott McTominay is a doubt after being forced off against Sociedad in midweek.
Edinson Cavani and Donny van de Beek missed the trip to Italy on Thursday with muscle issues so they face late fitness tests but the likes of Anthony Martial, Luke Shaw, David De Gea and Victor Lindelof are pushing for recalls.
As for Newcastle, they’ll continue to be without key striker Callum Wilson while Fabian Schar and Javier Manquillo are also absentees. Federico Fernandez is back in training but this game comes too soon.
Prediction
Manchester United 2-0 Newcastle: Man Utd are in desperate need of a win to boost their fading title hopes and Newcastle arrive in poor form having won just 2 of their last 13 games so today match prediction is a fairly straightforward one.
The Magpies have been woeful for much of the season, particularly away from home, and United were back to something like their best on Thursday night. As long as the Europa League trip didn’t take too much out of them, I expect United to ease to a 2-0 victory tonight.
Bruno Fernandes has been in sensational form all season and I think he’ll have a lot of joy against Newcastle this evening. The Portuguese international is a good shout for first goal-scorer and I expect he’ll be at the heart of all Man Utd’s attacking play.
