Manchester United moved up to third in the Premier League after a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace, but face a tough week with a trip to Newcastle United on Wednesday before hosting Aston Villa on Sunday.
Few expected Newcastle to struggle as they have this season. The Magpies have won just 10 of their 28 league matches and have only one victory in their last seven. A 3-2 defeat to Everton last time out, sealed by a late Thierno Barry goal, compounded their poor run.
In contrast, Man United remain unbeaten under Michael Carrick. Despite a slow start against Palace, they showed resilience to come from behind and secure all three points, extending their unbeaten run under the Englishman to seven matches.
The reverse fixture ended in a 1-0 win for United, with Patrick Dorgu scoring the decisive goal. Carrick is sweating over the fitness of Luke Shaw and Harry Maguire ahead of Wednesday’s clash.
Shaw, who has started every league game this season, was forced off early against Palace after a collision with Daniel Munoz. Maguire also appeared below full fitness, with Carrick admitting post-match that the defender was “not feeling too well,” offering no clear update before the Newcastle trip.
“Yeah, we’re hoping so,” he replied about their involvement at St James’ Park. “We’re working towards it. “They weren’t feeling too good. We’ve still got a little bit of time to the game and we will just have to see how they feel. So we’ll obviously give them every chance.
“No, it wasn’t injury, it’s just both of them weren’t feeling too good. So, yeah, it’s one of those things really. But we’ll just have to see how they are today and tomorrow morning.”
Defender Lisandro Martinez has missed the last few matches due to injury, while Mason Mount is stepping up his recovery. Patrick Chinazaekpere Dorgu remains sidelined long term, and Matthijs de Ligt has not featured since the win over Crystal Palace in November.
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