Team News
The looming Africa Cup of Nations continues to complicate Manchester United’s preparations, with December 15 confirmed as the mandatory release date for players involved in the tournament. However, Amad Diallo, Bryan Mbeumo and Noussair Mazraoui have not yet been ruled out of featuring on Monday night, leaving Amorim hopeful he can still call upon all three.
Benjamin Sesko also remains in contention despite recently recovering from food poisoning on top of an ongoing knee issue. In contrast, Matthijs de Ligt and Harry Maguire are expected to miss out again, as both defenders continue their recovery from back and hamstring problems respectively.
Ayden Heaven is poised to retain his place in the starting XI after impressing in consecutive Premier League outings. The 19-year-old has stepped in confidently for De Ligt, and unless Lisandro Martinez is deemed ready to start, Amorim is likely to show continued faith in the young defender.
Bournemouth are monitoring the fitness of Marcos Senesi after the centre-back was withdrawn during the second half of last weekend’s draw with Chelsea. Andoni Iraola is optimistic the issue was only cramp, which would be a timely boost given Veljko Milosavljevic is sidelined for several months with a knee ligament injury. Ryan Christie and Ben-Gannon Doak also remain unavailable, while Lewis Cook serves the final match of his suspension. Tyler Adams, however, returns to the midfield after completing a one-game ban.
Form Guide
Manchester United’s recent upturn has strengthened belief in Amorim’s project, with the club losing just once in their last nine matches and collecting seven points from the previous three league fixtures. That run has lifted them into the top six, with their points return across the last nine games surpassing what they managed in the preceding 17 combined.
Despite the improvement, consistency at Old Trafford remains elusive. United are without a home win in two matches and have conceded in 14 of their 15 Premier League games this season, underlining the defensive fragility Amorim is still attempting to resolve.
Bournemouth’s trajectory has moved in the opposite direction. Since beating Nottingham Forest in late October, they have gone six league matches without a win, taking just two points from a possible 18. Their draw against Chelsea last weekend was respectable, but it also extended a worrying winless streak that has seen them drift into the bottom half.
A drop-off in attacking output has been a major concern, with the Cherries now at risk of failing to score in three successive league matches for the first time since the 2022–23 campaign. Confidence in front of goal is clearly fragile heading into a demanding away fixture.
Predicted Outcome
Bournemouth’s disciplined performance against Chelsea suggests they are capable of making life uncomfortable, and history offers them an opportunity to achieve a rare milestone at Old Trafford. However, they can always spring a surprise or two, as we have seen earlier in the season. Our prediction Manchester United will get a 3-2 win, a laboured one indeed.
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