Manchester United will be desperate to bounce back following last weekend’s miserable 3-0 defeat at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur, and could consign Aston Villa to the Championship in the process.
The Villains are coming towards the end of a miserable campaign, and could be relegated before their match even kicks off if Norwich City avoid defeat against Sunderland in the day’s early kick off.
Even if Sam Allardyce’s Black Cats do pick up the three points against the Canaries, Villa would still need a win against the Red Devils to secure a stay of execution.
While the Villains find themselves 15 points from safety with only five games left to play and in a hopeless situation, United still have something to play for, and will be desperate to provisionally close the gap to rivals Manchester City—who currently occupy the fourth Champions League qualifying spot—before the Citizens’ trip to Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening.
Manchester United Predicted XI v Aston Villa
According to The Guardian, Louis van Gaal will be able to recall Wayne Rooney from injury for Saturday’s bout, and we’re tipping the England skipper to start in the hole, just off leading man Marcus Rashford, and flanked by youngsters Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard.
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We’re expecting Michael Carrick and Morgan Schneiderlin to hold the fort in the middle of the park, particularly with Ander Herrera a doubt and Bastian Schweinsteiger out for the rest of the campaign.
Following his recent fine form, we expect Tim Fosu-Mensah to feature at right-back, with Chris Smalling, Daley Blind and the unconvincing Marcos Rojo completing the back four.
David De Gea will start between the sticks.