Manchester United began their season on a positive note, churning out a morale boosting win over Tottenham. Hoping to ensure that they do not get lost in the obscurity of English football, the club is hoping they can capitalise on the Champions League spot this season. The club managed some smart business in the form of Memphis Depay, Sergio Romero and Darmian. The club travels to the Villa Park on Friday night for their next game.
Their hosts for the evening come off a good weekend, having recorded a win over the newly promoted Bournemouth. While they might have only won the game 1-0, the fact that new recruit Gestede was on the scoresheet must have given the Villa hopeful something to look forward to this season.
Team News
Aston Villa
Aston Villa have already lost crucial players to other teams in the form of Christian Benteke and Fabian Delph. The club are currently without the services of Okore (Knee), Grealish (Hamstring) and Gardner (Ankle). The pace of Grealish could have been put to good use testing the Italian Darmian, whose stock continues to grow. We could see Carlos Gil play some part in the game. We expect Tim Sherwood to pick the same team as last week, with Gestede coming on as an impact substitute.
Manchester United
Manchester United have a rather hale squad, with only Phil Jones set to miss the game with inury. However, there is a very feeble chance of David De Gea featuring in the game, with Real Madrid personnel hovering around Manchester with his new contract ready to be signed.
Interesting Facts
- Aston Villa have recorded just 3 league wins against Manchester United since the inception of the Premier League.
- This will be the 160th league meeting between these two sides, with United emerging victorious on 83 occasions against Villa’s 38.
Possible Line-Up
Aston Villa
Guzan, Clark, Bacuna, Amavi, Richards, Westwood, Gueye, Veretout, Agbonlahor, Ayew, Sinclair.
Manchester United
Romero, Darmian, Smalling, Blind, Shaw, Carrick, Schneiderlin, Mata, Young, Depay, Rooney.
Key Men
Rudy Gestede
The former Cardiff and Blackburn man began his Villa career on a sound note with an emphatic goal last match day. Having scored 33 goals in 66 appearances for Blackburn over the last 2 years, the striker is keen to leave a mark on the Premier League with this Villa side. The striker has a dominating presence in the air, having scored 19 headed goals in the last two seasons (the highest in the top four tiers). The tall striker could prove to be a handful for the United defence, that still looks unsorted, to say the least. We expect Gestede to start from the bench and come on and change the game on its head in the last 30 minutes of the game.
Memphis Depay       Â
Memphis Depay is definitely one of the young players to watch out for this season. The forward scored 22 goals last season, playing a critical part in ensuring his previous club PSV Eindhoven were crowned Champions of the Netherlands. The English Premier League could well test his mettle, but many critics and pundits believe that he could be the future of Manchester United. On Friday, the young Dutch player will need to constantly break free of the Aston Villa midfield. While he has flourished on the left wing, he could take some time adjusting to the closed spaces in the spine of the pitch, but could well turn devastating in it.
Prediction
Manchester United have the requisite quality in the midfield which could well prove to be the difference between the sides. We expect them to walk out 2-0 winners on Friday night.
