In Ralf Rangnick’s most important game as Manchester United manager thus far, United are facing 4th placed West Ham United at Old Trafford, with Man Utd having the chance to go above West Ham with a victory.
Manchester United are coming into this game after an impressive second-half performance away to Brentford which secured a 3-1 for the reds, whereas West Ham’s last game was a 3-2 home loss to Leeds United last Sunday.
The fixture between the sides earlier on in the season was nothing short of dramatic, the game was leveled at 1-1 heading into the final minutes, where Jesse Lingard popped up with a crucial goal but was thought to be canceled out as West Ham were awarded a late penalty, which was saved by David De Gea to give Man Utd the three points.
The game against Brentford saw a lot of great performances in the second half, with 19-year-old Anthony Elanga taking the headlines after scoring his first goal of the season with a well-taken goal.
Since taking over at Old Trafford Rangnick has put his faith in Elanga after impressing in training, and this has been rewarded with frequent game time and has been repaid for Rangnick as Elanga has looked really sharp in the last two games, direct and effective on the ball whilst also playing well within the team structure, making it likely he could continue to start this important game.
Declan Rice is a player that Man Utd have been linked to for years, and for good reason, because he is what makes this West Ham team tick, he is their defensive shield in midfield whilst also great at progressing the ball up the pitch, making him vital to try and stop in this game, otherwise, he could easily overpower Man Utd’s midfield
Team News
Man Utd has quite a few doubts coming into this game, with Cristiano Ronaldo, Jadon Sancho, Edison Cavani facing late fitness tests, while Rangnick confirmed Luke Shaw, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, and Victor Lindelof are out, along with Paul Pogba and Eric Bailly.
David Moyes has had some good news concerning his injuries, with Thomas Soucek and Kurt Zouma likely to come back into the starting line-up, although he will be missing Angelo Ogbonna to injury and Said Benrahma who is just returning from AFCON.
Predicted Starting XI’s
Manchester United
David De Gea
Diogo Dalot Raphael Varane Harry Maguire Alex Telles
Fred Scott McTominay Bruno Fernandes
Mason Greenwood Cristiano Ronaldo Anthony Elanga
West Ham United
Lukas Fabianksi
Vladamir Coufal Kurt Zouma Issa Diop Aaron Cresswell
Declan Rice Thomas Soucek
Jarrod Bowen Manuel Lanzini Pablo Fornals
Michail Antonio
Score Prediction: 2-2
