Manchester United will be eyeing their first win of the calendar year when they entertain Norwich City in the Premier League on Saturday. The Red Devils have failed to end on the winning side in the last three games in all competitions and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be expecting a strong response from his team against the Canaries, who are lying at the bottom of the league standings.
Formation: 4-2-3-1
Predicted Lineup:
David de Gea has been the undisputed goalkeeper choice for the league duties over the years and there are no doubts regarding his involvement on Saturday. He is expected to start in goal. The defence could be familiar from recent Premier League games. Harry Maguire was deemed a huge doubt for the contest earlier in the week but Solskjaer has provided a huge boost over the centre-back’s fitness in the pre-match press conference.
Hence, we are fancying Maguire to return in his central defensive role alongside Victor Lindelof. Aaron Wan-Bissaka should feature on the right side of the defence while Luke Shaw should get the nod over Brandon Williams in the opposite full-back spot. Williams has played two games in the space of one week but he may now be rested with a view to the FA Cup third round replay against Wolves.
In the midfield, Fred has remained a consistent figure over the past few months and the Brazilian will certainly take up one of the positions available. Andreas Pereira and Nemanja Matic will probably tussle for the second spot and we are predicting the latter to feature from the starting lineup, given he was impressive in his 45th-minute appearance in the Manchester derby where he was able to gain some control of the proceedings in the midfield.
Marcus Rashford is a definite starter on the left side of the attack and he should be accompanied by Mason Greenwood on the opposite flank after the teenager’s goalscoring contribution (assist for Rashford) in midweek. In the number 10 role, Jesse Lingard deserves to get the axe after his recent poor displays. Solskjaer has confirmed that the Englishman won’t feature due to an illness and Juan Mata could be handed with a rare league start in the position.
Anthony Martial will definitely lead the line after his cameo appearance in the Manchester derby where he was not completely fit after an illness. The Frenchman has a good scoring record against the Canaries and has scored on both occasions when he has faced the East Anglian side.
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