Two fallen giants of the English top flight go head-to-head as Manchester United make the trip to London to face Tottenham Hotspur this weekend.
Ange Postecoglou is barely clinging to his job and his sacking is expected to be confirmed if things go south for Spurs against Manchester United. Within a span of three days, Tottenham were torn apart at Anfield by Liverpool and lost at Villa Park as they departed from the EFL Cup and the F.A. Cup.
Tottenham’s only hope of securing silverware now remains in the Europa League. They qualified for the Round of 16 without much challenge, but they still have a long way to go. Spurs have gone over three months without winning a single Premier League home contest, and two draws and five losses have dented their stride.
Meanwhile, Manchester United come into this match on the back of a 2-1 victory over Leicester City as a late Harry Maguire strike sent his side through to the next round of the competition. Bobby de Cordova-Reid opened the scoring in the first half before Joshua Zirkzee’s 68th-minute goal settled the scores.
Despite faring well in cup competitions, the Red Devils’ league season has been marred by underwhelming performances. Once again, they were left frustrated at home against Crystal Palace. Jean-Philippe Mateta’s brace stood out as Ruben Amorim’s men looked without any plan for a comeback.
Man United could be sent into a potential relegation scare if they lose against Tottenham with Everton and West Ham having the opportunity to surpass them.
Results from their last five matches across all competitions
Tottenham:
W L W W L
Manchester United:
W L W W W
Team News
Ange Postecoglou is set to start Guglielmo Vicario and Destiny Udogie for the first time this season. James Maddison and Brennan Johnson are also on course to return after recovering from injuries.
Wilson Odobert will have to wait before being called up.
As for Manchester United, Lisandro Martinez is out with an ACL injury, and that was only the start of their problems this week. Saturday saw the announcement that Amad will likely miss the remainder of the season while Kobie Mainoo and Manuel Ugarte will miss some weeks.
Patrick Dorgu made his debut against The Foxes. Alejandro Garnacho could be handed a start for his exploits in the F.A. Cup.
Predicted XIs
Tottenham (4-3-3): Vicario; Porro, Gray, Danso, Spence; Sarr, Bissouma, Bergvall; Kulusevski, Tel, Son
Manchester United (3-4-2-1): Onana; De Ligt, Maguire, Yoro; Mazraoui, Casemiro, Fernandes, Dalot; Garnacho, Zirkzee, Hojlund