Manchester United come into this gameweek with the hope that hey could rise to 11th in the Premier League if Brentford fail to win. They haven’t seen the heights of 11th place or above in the league since gameweek five. Two Premier League wins in their last three seems like Ruben Amorim is starting to find a little more control with his squad. They won their final two Europa League games in the last 10 days to seal a place in the last 16 of the competition. This weekend could also see a busy period in the transfer window as they may look to bolster their squad. Kobbie Mainoo being used in the ‘number 10 role’ could be a big tactical change which could free up the young midfielder of quite so many defensive responsibilities.
Crystal Palace travel to Old Trafford two points behind their opponents and therefore a win would see them move above United. Palace had been undefeated in their previous six matches in all competitions before they were beaten at home by Brentford. Their away form has been incredible without a loss away from home since November in the league. They have strengthed their squad this window with the signing of Romain Esse but did lose Trevoh Chalobah, who was recalled to Chelsea.
Head-to-head record in the Premier League- Last 10 games
Crystal Palace 0-0 Man United
Crystal Palace 4-0 Man United
Man United 0-1 Crystal Palace
Man United 2-1 Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace 1-1 Man United
Crystal Palace 1-0 Man United
Man United 1-0 Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace 0-0 Man United
Man United 1-3 Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace 0-2 Man United
Crystal Palace 4 wins
Three Draws
Man United 3 wins
Matchup Statistics
- Man United haven’t scored against Crystal Palace in their last three matches in the Premier League, and they haven’t scored more than two goals against Palace in the league since February 2019.
- Daniel Munoz has played against Man Untied twice since joining Crystal Palace. He provided two assists in his first game against them and more importantly has kept clean sheets in both.
- In the fixture earlier in the season which finished 0-0 Man United had five big chances and forced seven saves from Dean Henderson.
- Man United played late on Thursday night in Bucharest. The game will only have finished around midnight local time and will have faced a near 3,000 km journey back to Manchester.
Team Statistics
- 19 of Man United’s 28 Premier League goals this season have come in the second half of games (68%). Only Leicester have a higher proportion of second-half goals.
- Including their penalty victory over Arsenal in the FA Cup, Man United have now won four games from their last five. None have been massively convincing but with late goals against Rangers, Southampton and Fulham, they have shown an ability to grind out results in recent weeks.
- In the four games before Thursday that Man United have won in Europe, they have returned to Premier League action with a win. This saw them beat Fulham, Man City, Everton and Leicester in the Premier League off the back of a positive result in Europe.
- Crystal Palace have kept three clean sheets in their last six games. In their last seven games, Manchester United scored seven goals, failing to score on three occasions.
- Crystal Palace are undefeated in their last seven away matches. This includes draws with Bournemouth and Aston Villa and wins over teams like Brighton and West Ham.
Player Statistics
- Romain Esse scored with his first touch in the Premier League. In his 24 starts for Millwall in the Championship this year, he only scored four goals.
- Nine of Crystal Palace’s goals have come from defenders, more than any other side in the league.
- Kobbie Mainoo scored and provided an assist when playing for the first time in the ‘number 10’ role. If he plays more frequently in this role he could see an increased attacking output.
- Lisandro Martinez has scored twice and provided an assist in his last six games in all competitions. The two goals have come in his last three Premier League starts.