Seeking to avoid another damaging defeat as Manchester United head coach, under-fire Ruben Amorim prepares his team for a Premier League showdown with Chelsea at Old Trafford on Saturday evening.
The Blues lock horns with the Red Devils just over four months after securing a slender 1-0 victory over Amorim’s men at Stamford Bridge, courtesy of a second-half strike from Marc Cucurella.
United players are allegedly ‘losing faith’ in Amorim, but the 40-year-old has no choice but to dust himself down and
galvanise his floundering troops, who beat Burnley 3-2 in their last home match and will endeavour to claim successive league victories at Old Trafford within the same season under the same manager for the first time since December 2023 under Erik ten Hag.
While the Red Devils have only come out on top in two of their last 11 encounters with Saturday’s opponents Chelsea in all competitions (D6 L3), they are unbeaten in their last 12 PL home games against the Blues (W5 D7) since a 1-0 loss in May 2013. Indeed, Chelsea’s PL win rate at Old Trafford (18% – 6/33) is their lowest away to any team they have visited 10 times or more in the division.
United defender Lisandro Martinez is still recovering from a long-term knee injury sustained in February, and Diogo Dalot (muscle) is also sidelined, but Amorim has confirmed that Matheus Cunha (hamstring) and Mason Mount (unspecified) are available for selection – it remains to be seen whether either player is fit to start, though.
The big decision for Amorim this weekend is whether to hand deadline-day goalkeeper signing Senne Lammens his Premier League debut, or stick with Altay Bayindir between the sticks.
Bryan Mbeumo, who was involved in six goals in seven Premier League appearances against Chelsea (three goals, three assists) with former club Brentford, is expected to link up with Amad Diallo and Benjamin Sesko in the final third, while Casemiro is set to battle with Manuel Ugarte for a start in centre-midfield alongside captain Bruno Fernandes.
Premier League schedule
It’s a late afternoon kickoff in the UK, which means a 12:30 p.m. kickoff on the East Coast of the U.S.
Premier League channel
The match is on Sky Sports in the UK. Those Stateside can watch on USA or NBC Sports streaming. In Canada, it’s on DAZN, Fubo or Amazon Prime Video.
Everyone else, head on over to LiveSoccerTV to find your viewing options.
Predicted Lineup
Manchester United possible starting lineup:
Bayindir; Yoro, De Ligt, Shaw; Mazraoui, Casemiro, Fernandes, Dorgu; Mbeumo, Sesko, Amad
