Man U vs. Leicester City
Venue: Old Trafford
Kick off: 12:30pm
Manchester United will attempt to respond from back-to-back Premier League defeats when they welcome champions Leicester City to Old Trafford in a key match on Saturday (today).
The Red Devils have lost their last two league games to Manchester City and Watford, although Jose Mourinho’s side (seventh) do sit above Leicester (11th) in the table, with the Foxes only managing seven points from five fixtures this term.
The Red Devils did return to winning ways on Wednesday night with a 3-1 success away to Northampton Town in the third round of the League Cup, but they entered that match off the back of a 3-1 defeat to Watford in the Premier League last weekend, which followed a 1-0 loss to Feyenoord in their first Europa League group match.
Man United have so often been known for their ability to bounce back quickly from defeat, but they do not seem to have recovered from the home loss to Manchester City after the international break.
A record of nine points from five league games is not exactly disastrous, but they are already six points off leaders Man City, who look so dominant.
It was however going to be a difficult season for Leicester after their stunning Premier League success last term, but Claudio Ranieri’s side have made a solid start to the campaign, which has included their first ever Champions League fixture.
A shock 2-1 defeat at Hull City on the opening weekend of the Premier League season would have brought the Foxes back down to earth, but they put in a much better performance against Arsenal one week later to claim a point in a 0-0 draw. A 2-1 win over Swansea City at the end of August brought Leicester their first three points of the campaign, but they lost heavily at Liverpool after the international break.
The champions did record a 3-0 win over Burnley last weekend, however, to move into 11th position in the table on seven points. There will be no more League Cup football for the Foxes this season though after losing 4-2 to Chelsea in extra time on Wednesday night. In truth, it was a fixture that Ranieri’s side did not need at this stage of the campaign.
Whatever happens this season, no-one will ever be able to take Leicester’s first Champions League match away from them.
It was a wonderful occasion for the club and indeed a brilliant result as they won 3-0 at Club Brugge.
There will be tougher tests ahead, namely Porto next week, but Leicester showed that they can compete at that level of football.
Incredibly, Leicester only lost three times in the Premier League last term, but defeat at Old Trafford would be their third of this season, just six games in.
Indeed, the Foxes have now gone four successive away matches without a win in the league.
Man United possible starting lineup: De Gea, Valencia, Smalling, Bailly, Shaw, Pogba, Fellaini, Herrera, Rooney, Ibrahimovic, Rashford.
Leicester City possible starting lineup: Schmeichel, Simpson, Huth, Morgan, Fuchs, Mahrez, Drinkwater, Amartey, Albrighton, Vardy, Slimani.