Kick-off: 2015, 27/01/2021
Stadium: Old Trafford
TV: BT Sport
Manchester United and Sheffield United are at opposite ends of the Premier League table, but this match may not be the walk-over many people expect.
The Red Devils could be tempted to ease off a touch in between two recent clashes with Liverpool and a tricky trip to Arsenal, plus the Blades have troubled them before.
We like 19/20 for the visitors with two goals start in the handicap list for our first Man Utd vs Sheff Utd prediction.
A Look At Manchester United’s Betting Odds
In stark contrast to their tepid league draw, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side enjoyed a thrilling 3-2 triumph over Liverpool in the FA Cup here on Sunday.
Mason Greenwood and Marcus Rashford finished off breakaway moves in clinical fashion, while Bruno Fernandes fired in a superb free-kick to settle the issue.
A highly-entertaining encounter, in which Mohamed Salah bagged a brace, provided us with a clean sweep of 13/10, 29/10 and 11/2 winning tips from our match preview.
This promises to be a very different type of test, though, with the Blades far less likely to come out and engage in end-to-end action.
That may put the onus on Fernandes to break open a defensive wall, rather than the Red Devils’ flying forwards, who usually flourish more in counter-attacking situations.
“He’s got that quality in and around the box,” said Solskjaer of the Portugal playmaker. “He’s proven to give players assists or score goals.
“That was a very good free-kick. He managed to practice a lot because when he was told that he wasn’t starting, he stayed out practising for half an hour, 45 minutes…and it paid off.”
Looking at the Man Utd vs Sheff Utd odds, Fernandes is a worthy favourite to open the scoring at 13/5.
Last Man Utd line-up: Henderson, Lindelof, Maguire, Shaw, Wan-Bissaka, Pogba, Van de Beek, McTominay, Cavani, Rashford, Greenwood.
A Look At Sheffield United’s Betting Odds
Chris Wilder is facing a monumentous task to try and keep the Blades up after starting the season so slowly, but recent efforts have been encouraging.
Sheffield United are into round five of the FA Cup after beating Bristol Rovers 3-2 away and Plymouth 2-1 at Bramall Lane.
The Yorkshire outfit also recently claimed a first league win of the campaign by edging out Newcastle 1-0, before battling bravely in a 3-1 loss to Tottenham.
“I think you’ve got to put it into perspective, as two of the teams that we beat are out of League One,” commented Wilder.
“But there’s no downside to winning games of football and playing well.”
On Saturday’s triumph over Argyle, he added: “I thought for long periods we played well, dominated the ball, moved the ball around the pitch, created chances.
“We just didn’t really put them to bed in the last bit, which possibly we should have done.”
The visitors have proven they can test their next opponents’ defence, drawing 3-3 with them last season and only going down 3-2 when they met in the run-up to Christmas.
Crucially, they showed in December’s clash and versus Spurs a willingness to keep plugging away when behind against top teams.
A price of 15/2 for a 2-1 home victory.
Last Sheff Utd line-up: Ramsdale, Stevens, Basham, Egan, Bogle, Ampadu, Fleck, Lundstram, Norwood, Sharp, Brewster.
Additional stats
Last result:
MAN UTD 3-2 Liverpool – Mason Greenwood, Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes
SHEFF UTD 2-1 Plymouth – Chris Basham, Billy Sharp
Head-to-head: Sheff Utd 2-3 Man Utd, Man Utd 3-0 Sheff Utd, Sheff Utd 3-3 Man Utd
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