The Red Devils face a desperate battle to claw their way into the Premier League top four and qualify for the Champions League next season.
Manchester United welcome AFC Bournemouth to Old Trafford on the final game day of a season that has gone horribly wrong for them. After having crashed out of the Champions League and Europa League, and falling by the wayside in the Premier League race, the Red Devils suddenly found themselves in with a fighting chance to finish in fourth position after the draw between Man City and Arsenal last week.
However in a thrilling final encounter at Upton Park, they were hammered 3-2 by West Ham United. Now not only do Manchester United have to beat Bournemouth, they will also be hoping for an unlikely result as Manchester City face Swansea needing just a point to leave their cross-town rivals behind them in the dirt.
Probable Lineups:
Manchester United
Luke Shaw and Bastian Schweinsteiger will not be featuring in the final game of the season, as the two long term absentees will look at pre-season to work on their fitness. Apart from that, Anthony Martial recovered from a knock to take part in the mid-week fixture against West Ham and is expected to start against the Cherries as well.
Van Gaal is expected to start with a largely first choice attack and midfield, consisting of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard up front, Wayne Rooney, Michael Carrick and Morgan Schneiderlin in midfield. With the two first-choice full backs Luke Shaw and Matteo Darmian unavailable, Marcos Rojo and Antonio Valencia line up alongside Chris Smalling and Daley Blind in defence. The inspirational David de Gea also takes up his position between the posts.
Starting XI:- De Gea, Rojo, Smalling, Blind, Valencia, Schneiderlin, Carrick, Martial, Rooney, Lingard, Rashford
AFC Bournemouth
The Cherries have four players out injured, defenders Sylvain Distin, Tyrone Mings and Adam Smith, as well as forward Tokelo Rantie. However, Eddie Howe has a relatively fit squad to choose from and will be hoping his main players can emulate their exploits the last time these two teams faced off.
Joshua King and Callum Wilson will be their main attacking threats, with Harry Arter also a threat in midfield. Junior Stanislas scored an insane goal from a corner last time against Manchester United, and will look to pull something out of the hat this time as well.
Starting XI:- Boruc, Daniels, Cook, Elphick, Francis, Gradel, Surman, Arter, Stanislas, Wilson, King
Key Stats:
- Manchester United are unbeaten in their last 7 games at Old Trafford.
- Only Premier League champions Leicester City have won more points at home than the Red Devils.
- Manchester United have conceded just eight goals at home this season, the lowest in top flight football.
- The Cherries have just won four points from their last 21 possible points.
- Bournemouth have conceded 64 goals this season, second only to bottom placed Aston Villa
Player to watch out for:
Marcus Rashford
Manchester United’s teenage sensation faces off against AFC Bournemouth for the first time. He’s had a stellar debut season and will look to end it with a bang. Expect the youngster to outfox the Cherries defence with timely runs, fast pace and a precision finish.
Rashford will have ample support from Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard on the wings.
Prediction:
Manchester United 3-0 AFC Bournemouth
Manchester United fans haven’t had a lot to be cheerful about this season. Their side have failed to knock in the goals and 1-0 scorelines have sadly become commonplace. In the final game of the season, the Red Devils’ would wish to give their fans a fitting farewell at least.
The fine goal scoring touch of Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford combined with the Cherries’ poor defensive record means that this will likely be a good result for Man United. Not that it even begins to make up for the rest of the season.
Blast from the Past:
The most significant meeting between the two teams was the reverse fixture earlier in the season, where the Cherries pulled off a major upset in their first ever league encounter against Manchester United. The highlight had to be former United academy player Junior Stanislas’ freak goal from the corner.
