Cristiano Ronaldo should return to the lineup while Harry Maguire could be benched when Manchester United face arch-rivals Arsenal in the Premier League.
Manchester United will be aiming to end three-game their winless run in the Premier League when they welcome arch-rivals Arsenal to Old Trafford on Thursday night.
While the club have confirmed Ralf Rangnick as the new interim manager, work permit issues mean that the German will not be in the dugout when the Gunners come visiting. Instead, it will again be Michael Carrick who will be leading the team in a caretaker capacity. Ahead of the game, the former Manchester United midfielder provided an update on the team news in his pre-match presser.
“Nothing really new. There are always niggles at this time of year, playing a lot of games. There are always players you’re waiting on a little bit, to an extent. Obviously, Harry is coming back into the squad after his suspension but we’ll see who is fit and available for tomorrow [Thursday],” Carrick said.
Indeed, Manchester United will welcome back captain Harry Maguire after his one-match ban. However, Paul Pogba, Raphael Varane and Edinson Cavani remain sidelined, while Luke Shaw is an injury doubt due to the concussion he suffered last month.
Manchester United vs Arsenal Preview: Probable Lineups, Prediction, Tactics, Team News & Key Stats
In the last two matches, Carrick showed that he would not shy away from taking the big calls. And, considering Maguire’s recent form, the caretaker boss might opt to leave the Manchester United captain on the bench against Arsenal, going in with the duo of Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly at centre-back, after the pair performed fairly well in the weekend clash versus Chelsea.
There is no looking past David de Gea in goal while Aaron Wan-Bissaka is a guaranteed starter at right-back for the Red Devils. With Shaw still a doubt, Alex Telles could once again start from the get-go at left-back when the Gunners pay a visit.
Carrick deployed a diamond midfield formation against Chelsea over the weekend but is likely to revert to United’s favoured 4-2-3-1 setup on Thursday night, with Scott McTominay and Fred forming the double pivot in the middle of the park. That would mean Nemanja Matic drops out of the lineup.
Bruno Fernandes had a forgettable outing last time but is likely to be preferred over Donny van de Beek in the No. 10 slot again when Manchester United face Arsenal. Jadon Sancho, who is starting to come good for the 20-time English champions, ought to feature out on the right flank while Marcus Rashford should start on the left, ahead of Anthony Martial.
Cristiano Ronaldo, who was surprisingly omitted from the starting XI against Chelsea, should be reinstated on Thursday to spearhead the Manchester United attack.
Manchester United Predicted XI: De Gea, Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Bailly, Telles, McTominay, Fred, Sancho, Fernandes, Rashford, Ronaldo.
