After having their matches against Brentford and Brighton postponed, Manchester United returned to the pitch with a 1-1 draw against Newcastle at St. James Park, much to the disappointment of United fans.
With Allan Saint-Maximin finding himself on the scoresheet in the 7th minute, the tone of the match was set from there. Despite United enjoying 69% of the possession and more passes, it was Newcastle that controlled the match, and only David De Gea’s heroic performance and an Edison Cavani equaliser helped the Red Devils scurry away with a single point.
After severely underperforming against the struggling Newcastle, United now entertains another struggling side in the form of Burnley at Old Trafford, on Friday the 31st of December. Ralf Rangnick is expected to have all players ready to go for the Burnley game, except for Bruno Fernandes who is suspended for a game after picking up his fifth yellow card in the Newcastle game. The United manager will be expected to shake the squad up following the poor showing against Newcastle.
Predicted shifts will come in the defensive line and forwards as well. Surely a manager of Rangnick’s calibre would have noticed the gaping hole in the defensive line that was Maguire. Also, United found new life in the second half of the Burnley game after Cavani came on as a substitute. With the energy that Cavani brings with him, surely he will have to start this Friday.
As for Burnley, 4 of their 5 last matches ended in stalemates, which is, all things considered, at least on par, if not better than how Newcastle has fared in the last 5 games. They currently occupy the 18th spot on the table, 1 spot ahead of Newcastle. Other than Connor Roberts who is ruled out due to an infection, Burnley’s squad remains available for Friday’s clash at Old Trafford.
The verdict for this game, would be a close United victory, or a draw. Based on recent games on both sides, it seems unlikely that many goals are to be scored, and expect no more than 2 goals to be scored at Old Trafford this New Years Eve.