Struggling giants Manchester United and Chelsea clash on Wednesday night with both teams sat towards midtable in the Premier League.
The Red Devils were completely dominated by Newcastle at the weekend, losing 1-0 in a defeat that saw them drop down to seventh.
Erik ten Hag and his team have come under plenty of criticism in recent weeks and they are in desperate need of some positivity around the club.
However, they now face a Chelsea side that are coming into the game off the back of a 3-2 win over Brighton at Stamford Bridge.
Mauricio Pochettino’s men have shown signs of how good they can be but consistency has been an issue throughout the campaign, meaning they still sit tenth in the table.
A win against United would prove they have turned a corner ahead of the busy winter period though, and it would also leave Ten Hag’s side in even more turmoil.
Manchester United vs Chelsea: A decade in waiting…
However, the bad news for Chelsea is that they have not enjoyed many of their recent trips to Old Trafford.
The Blues have failed to win away at Man United in over 10 years, with their last Premier League victory coming in May 2013.
They won 1-0 that day thanks to a goal from Juan Mata but they have not picked up three points on the red side of Manchester since then.
Six draws and four losses have followed, meaning Pochettino’s side are out to end the long wait this Wednesday night.
- Manchester United are unbeaten in their last 11 Premier League games against Chelsea (W4 D7) since a 1-0 away loss in November 2017.
- Manchester United against Chelsea is the most drawn fixture in Premier League history (26 games). 19 of these have been score draws (a joint-high with Arsenal v Tottenham), while a 1-1 draw between these sides is the most common exact result in the competition (14 times).
Manchester United vs Chelsea: Team news
Mason Mount is likely to miss the game against his former club having only just returned to training following a calf injury.
United have been boosted by Luke Shaw’s return to the starting line-up, however, he may not be fit enough to play from the off again in midweek.
That means Victor Lindelof or Raphael Varane could be handed a start at centre-back.
Lisandro Martinez, Tyrell Malacia, Casemiro, Christian Eriksen and Jonny Evans all remain out but Rasmus Hojlund is back.
As for Chelsea, captain Reece James will return after serving his suspension against Brighton.
However, Conor Gallagher now misses out after he picked up two yellow cards in that game while wearing the armband in James’ absence.
Cole Palmer was only fit enough for the bench last time out after a slight knock but he is expected to be back in the line-up this week.
Christopher Nkunku and Romeo Lavia are nearing full fitness but Malo Gusto, Wesley Fofana, Carney Chukwuemeka, Trevoh Chalobah and Ben Chilwell remain out.
- Manchester United have lost three of their last five Premier League home games (W2), having won eight in a row at Old Trafford before that. The Red Devils have failed to score before half-time in six of their seven home league games so far this term.
- Chelsea have won three of their last four Premier League away games (L1), more than they had in their previous 16 (W2 D5 L9). However, they’re winless in seven on the road against sides to finish in the top four the previous season (D3 L4), including a 4-1 defeat to Newcastle last time out.
Manchester United vs Chelsea: What has been said?
Marcus Rashford has received criticism after continuing his poor form this season during the defeat to Newcastle at the weekend.
The forward looks low on confidence but Man United icon Roy Keane doesn’t believe that excuses a lack of work rate.
“I go back to the players I played with – wide players who were very, very talented like Giggs and Beckham, Sharpe, Kanchelskis. Let me tell you – they ran. They bloody ran. And they were top players for Man United,” Keane said.
“It’s alright running that way [points forward] but you’ve got to run back.
“Man United fans don’t jump on players’ backs that quickly… are they really frustrated with Marcus Rashford for his lack of skill? Not really. Because they don’t see him running, playing for the badge.
“He’s had a lot of plaudits over the last few years, he’s got the mega deal, all well and good. And you’re looking at the players, I’m always looking at the players, have they got the hunger, that desire to do well? Marcus isn’t showing it that much.
“When you run forward, no problem, but you bloody run back. You’re playing for Man United, no excuses.
“All we hear our excuses, confidence. Every player can go through a dip in confidence but sometimes you go back and think, ‘how do I fix this?’ You run!”
- Marcus Rashford scored 20 goals in 30 home games in all competitions for Man Utd last season, with only Erling Haaland netting more home goals among Premier League players (35). This season, Rashford has 0 goals in 10 appearances at Old Trafford so far.
- Chelsea’s Raheem Sterling has either scored (2) or assisted (1) a goal in each of his last three Premier League away games, last doing so in four in a row between July-October 2020. However, Manchester United are the side Raheem Sterling has faced most often in his senior career (all competitions) without ever scoring (24 games).
Manchester United vs Chelsea: How to follow
This Premier League clash will take place on Wednesday, December 6.
Kick-off at Old Trafford is scheduled for 8:15pm.
The game will be broadcast live on Amazon Prime Video.
More details on the schedule and how to sign up can be found here.
talkSPORT.com will also be running a live blog of all the action.
