Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson is backing Man Utd to secure Champions League qualification this season.
Writing in his Sportskeeda column, Merson said that Michael Carrick’s men have a “huge advantage” over their rivals as they have far fewer games to play between now and May:
“At the moment, I would say Manchester United are the big favourites to finish in the top five. That win over Fulham was a huge result.”
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“They only play once a week as well, which is a huge advantage compared to Liverpool and Chelsea. So I would have to call them favourites even though it’s still very tight.”
What are the odds on Man Utd finishing in the top 5?
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Opta have given the Red Devils a 27.34% chance, which is actually lower than the likes of Aston Villa (89.74%), Liverpool (41%) and Chelsea (39.04%).
Those percentages are based on the results they have recorded so far this season and the difficulty of the matches they have left.
Of course, it doesn’t factor in other elements, including the fact that United do only play 14 more times between now and the final day on May 24th.
How many more matches could their rivals play?
Liverpool are in the last 16 of the Champions League and the 4th round of the FA Cup, so including their remaining league fixtures, they could potentially have 26 games left.
It is the same for Chelsea, although they also made it to the Carabao Cup semi-finals, which means they have already played more matches than Liverpool and United so far this season.
Preparation time and rest will definitely help in the Manchester club’s attempts to finish in the Champions League places, but it remains to be seen how big a role it will play.
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