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Manchester United journey to Villa Park this afternoon (Sunday) to face Aston Villa, in what seems like a crunch fixture within the race for the highest 4 locations within the Premier League.
Erik ten Hag’s males have began 2024 in good type, unbeaten of their 5 fixtures throughout all competitions.
A win within the Midlands would reduce the hole between the 2 sides to 5 factors and depart United fancying their probabilities of chasing down Unai Emery’s facet.
Villa at the moment occupy the ultimate Champions League qualification spot with United languishing in sixth after a poor first half of the marketing campaign.
United took benefit of Villa’s excessive line to win the reverse fixture by three objectives to 2 after discovering themselves two behind at Outdated Trafford on Boxing Day.
Emery’s facet are anticipated to deploy the identical ways on residence soil and United’s lightning fast entrance line will maintain the important thing to the three factors.
United will look to go from back-to-front rapidly to launch Marcus Rashford, Rasmus Hojlund and Alejandro Garancho who’re discovering some type in latest weeks.
The standard in United’s midfield ought to have the power to play the best passes, on the proper occasions, to set the attacking trio free.
With Villa trying to squeeze the play into the United half, Bruno Fernandes particularly shall be tasked with supplying the attackers with one-touch balls in behind.
Casemiro’s physicality in the course of the park will assist fight Villa’s power in that space, with the harmful John McGinn and excellent Douglas Luiz hoping to tug the strings for the house facet.
Ollie Watkins is in double figures for Premier League objectives this season and can present an enormous risk to Ten Hag’s defence.
Harry Maguire is having fun with an honest marketing campaign of his personal and shall be up for the duty of holding Villa’s high scorer quiet, with Raphael Varane sweeping up the scraps.
Villa have been largely wonderful this season however do have an in depth damage record and suffered back-to-back residence defeats after a report breaking run underneath Emery.
United’s attacking risk will definitely trigger the skilled Spanish coach additional complications this afternoon and if the forwards catch fireplace, Ten Hag must be taking a look at a really priceless three factors.
Given United’s low key return to type and Villa’s troubles, at the moment’s sport seems like the right alternative for Ten Hag’s troops to put a marker down for the second half of the season.
