Manchester United will face Arsenal in the Premier League this Sunday in a very important game in the race for fourth. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men are coming off the back of a superb 3-1 victory over PSG fin mid-week. Arsenal, meanwhile, suffered an embarrassing loss to mid-table Ligue 1 side Rennes on Thursday night in the Europa League. However, the Gunners can take encouragement from the fact they are playing at home on Sunday where their form is usually reliable.
That being said, United have received boosts of their own over the last couple of days with Solskjaer revealing Anthony Martial, Ander Herrera and Nemanja Matic are all in contention to play following returns from injury. ‘Anthony will be available and hopefully we’ll have Nemanja and/or Ander ready as well, so looking better for it,’ Solskjaer said. ‘They just need to have another couple of days training with the team, they’ve done well in their recovery work.’
Despite the likely returns of some star players, the Norwegian manager is still monitoring the fitness of certain other performers following an exhausting night during the week.
‘The fitness issue plays in more than ever, because we’ve got players coming in, players who put a proper shift in,’ he added. ‘It was one of the hardest nights we’ve had physically, probably this one and the Arsenal Cup game were the two toughest games we had. And it was great to have fresh legs [in Paris]. Scott [McTominay] and Fred covered the ground so much and is something we have to consider this time.’
Predicted XI Attack: Rashford and Lukaku to keep their place
It will be virtually impossible for Solskjaer to leave out either one of Marcus Rashford and Romelu Lukaku given their recent form. The Belgium international has six goals in his last three games, making him the first name of the teamsheet at the moment. Rashford, on the other hand, kept his cool to convert a last-minute penalty against PSG to undoubtedly secure his place in the team against the Gunners. Martial is likely to come into the side to add some much-needed natural width to the team as well, while Rashford could be forced to play in a wider position. Arsenal’s defence also struggled with Ismaila Sarr’s pace on Thursday in the Europa League, and Martial will often a similar threat in attack.
Midfield: The return of Pogba, Herrera and Matic
Scott McTominay and Andreas Pereira have done a brilliant job in recent weeks when filling in, especially the latter who scored against Southampton. But truth be told, they still remain some way behind the level of Paul Pogba and Matic in terms of genuine quality. One of them could force their way into the team ahead of Herrera, but even that’s a big ask with the Spain international being a favourite of Solskjaer’s so far.
Defence: Bailly drops out for Young
The defence is likely to remain the same from the last few weeks, with Victor Lindelof marshaling the back line alongside Chris Smalling. One thing that is for sure is that Eric Bailly will never be playing at right-back again for the club. He had a shocker against PSG in mid-week, forcing Solskjaer to substitute him off for Diogo Dalot after just 36 minutes. The 19-year-old full-back could be an option to start this weekend, but it’s likely the Norwegian boss will still opt for the experienced Ashley Young at right-back.