Manchester United are back in action and they will have an important test ahead of them. It is not the toughest one, not even close, as United are set to host Norwich City at Old Trafford on Saturday afternoon. However, it is still a tricky one, since Ralf Rangnick’s side is not allowed to make any mistakes here. The reason for that is that they have already made too many mistakes this season, especially if we know the team has won just one point from the last two games. their hopes of Champions League football are in question and here is what you need to know ahead of this match.
Team News
Manchester United will continue without Luke Shaw and Edinson Cavani, who are still injured and will not be able to help the team out. But they are not the only ones. Raphael Varane, Scott McTominay and Fred are all out of contention this time around, so it will be interesting to see how will Ralf Rangnick’s starting XI look on Saturday. This could give way to the likes of Nemanja Matic and Paul Pogba to start against Norwich.
As for the visitors, they are also having some players out of action. Among the injured players are Ozan Kabak, Andrew Omobamidele, Adam Idah and Joshua Sargent. Also, Man United’s loanee Brandon Williams cannot play against his parent club. The likes of Bully Gilmour and Przemyslaw Placheta will be doubts ahead of the kick-off, as Norwich will still have to assess their situation.
Form Guide
Man United’s form has been nothing short of disappointing. Since 20 February, Rangnick’s side has won just one in seven matches in all competitions, beating Tottenham Hotspur 3-2. But apart from that, there were plenty of poor results. The Champions League exit was painful but somewhat expected, as well as the Man City drubbing. But then there was the 1-1 draw against a weakened Leicester City at Old Trafford and a shocking 1-0 loss to Everton last week at Goodison Park. Those matches could really cost United their place in the Champions League.
Norwich, on the other hand, are in a slight upturn in form. When they drew 0-0 against Burnley and defeated Burnley 2-0, it looked like they are waking up and finally doing something about their potential stay in the Premier League. And those four points are particularly big when you consider their form prior to them. Dean Smith’s side had lost seven matches in a row in all competitions. Sure, there were matches against Manchester City, twice against Liverpool and also against Chelsea. However, their defeats to Leeds, Brentford and Southampton were what did not give them the chance to get away from the bottom of the league standings.
Predicted Outcome
We predict Manchester United will beat Norwich City 2-0. Rangnick clearly has the better side in this duel and the Devils cannot allow themselves to squander the potential three points. After Norwich, they will face Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea in quick succession and therefore, this match even more looks like a must-win one.
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