With the English Premier League coming to a climactic end, Manchester United host city rivals Manchester City as the two teams struggle to find a foothold in the top 4 of the league table. So what surprises does Louis Van Gaal have in store for the a noisy neighboursa More importantly for the United faithful, what surprises do City have in store for Van Gaal? Here are three chief concerns that are likely to bother Van Gaal as Manchester United line up against Manchester City.
Sergio Aguero-The Special One?
If there is one man that is likely to terrorize Manchester United, it is the Argentine forward Sergio Aguero. Though Aguero hasna t had the best season this year, all will be forgiven if he can lead Manchester City back to the second spot in the Premier League table. The Argentine is as fast as he is effective and will be expected to run loops around the Manchester United defence.
Van Gaal will be keen on keeping a man marked on Aguero but will know that the procedure is likely to be ineffective as the Argentine international has a knack for slipping past defenders and slipping the ball past the goalkeeper. A real threat in front of goal, Aguero is likely to be a thorn in the side of the Manchester United faithful as he visits the Old Trafford on Sunday.
Yaya Toure-The Giant in the Midfield
With Michael Carrick, Ander Herrera and Fellaini expected to line up in the midfield at Old Trafford, Yaya Toure will tower over the United midfield as he will look to control the proceedings. The Ivory Coast international has been the subject of much debate with questions being raised regarding his form.
Though Yaya Toure has not been the force he was for Manchester City last season, he is a big match player and is likely to step up his performance at Old Trafford. It will be interesting to see what plans Van Gaal has in store for the tall midfielder and if the likes of Herrera and Carrick can really afford to go toe-to-toe with him in the battle for supremacy in the midfield.
A Leaky Manchester United Defence
Though Manchester United have put forward a strong display in their recent outings, the defensive back-four is still prone to errors which could effectively cost the game against an opponent like Manchester City. With Chris Smalling likely to miss the game due to illness, United will have a hard time dealing with the likes of Sergio Aguero and David Silva who will keep the Red Devils busy with their intricate passing. With regards to Smalling, many still remember his performance in the reverse fixture where he earned a red card in the first half to tilt the balance in Manchester Citya s favour.
Manchester Uniteda s saviour, David De Gea has also not been in the best of forms after conceding a soft goal against Aston Villa that seemed to slip past him. So will Manchester Uniteda s leaky defence come back to haunt Louis Van Gaal? We will soon find out.
