Manchester United will be welcoming Watford to Old Trafford as they look to narrow the gap between them and fourth place. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side is currently at the 7th spot with 38 points and registered a massive result by beating Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. Meanwhile, the Hornets will also be desperate for a win in order to move away from the relegation zone as they’ve got 24 points on board for the time being. In the reverse fixture, it was Watford who bagged a 2-0 win over United and went on a positive run. However, Troy Deeney and co. will have to work harder this time around in order to get maximum points as the Old Trafford faithful will be behind their team.
Match Details
Date- Sunday, February 23
Kick-Off- 7:30 PM (IST)
Venue- Old Trafford
Manchester United
January signing Odion Ighalo is still waiting for his chance to be on the starting lineup and will be eager to face his former club. The positive news for the Reds is that Scott McTominay is in contention of being back in the squad after returning to training recently. Eric Bailly was given a rest against Club Brugge and could be made available at centre-half again. Aaron Wan-Bissaka should feature at right-back, while Dan James should feature out wide.
Watford
Nigel Pearson will be wanting Ismaila Sarr back in the team as he will be assessed prior to kick-off. Danny Welbeck has returned to fitness and could start against his boyhood club. Roberto Pereyra might have to settle for the bench. Nathaniel Chalobah is likely to come in place of Will Hughes at midfield while accompanying Etienne Capoue, while, Abdoulaye Doucoure should lead the attack.
MUN (Expected Playing 11)- De Gea; Shaw, Maguire, Bailly, Wan-Bissaka; Matic, Fred; James, Fernandes, Greenwood; Martial
WAT (Expected Playing 11)- Foster; Mariappa, Kabassele, Cathcart, Masina; Chalobah, Capoue; Welbeck, Doucoure, Deulofeu; Deeney
Anthony Martial has bagged two goals from his last two games and has been one of the key players for Manchester United this season. The 24-year-old has nine goals, three assists and a pass accuracy of 81.8% from 1638 minutes in the league this season.
Troy Deeney scored a goal at home against Manchester United this season and could once again do some damage on the final third. The Watford captain has five goals and an assist from 15 appearances this season.
Bruno Fernandes has brought in a surge of positivity ever since his move in January. The midfielder has looked sharp with his distribution and has an assist as well as a pass accuracy of 80% from two league games so far Manchester United.
Gerard Deulofeu could pack a punch from Watford’s end, as he’s scored four goals and has five assists with a pass accuracy of 80.5% from 1982 minutes in the league this season.
From the last six games between the two sides, Manchester United has won five, while Watford has won one.
Though Manchester United have dropped points against teams from the bottom half of the table before, the hosts should be able to bag a win.
Goalkeeper- B Foster
Defenders- A Wan-Bissaka, H Maguire, L Shaw, C Cathcart
Midfielders- Fred, B Fernandes (VC), E Capoue
Forwards- M Greenwood, A Martial (C), T Deeney
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