Manchester United host Brighton & Hove Albion in the Carabao Cup third round tonight.
The Red Devils suffered a disappointing 1-0 Premier League loss to Manchester City at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Erling Haaland scored a controversial goal for the Cityzens that should have been ruled out for offside.
With the defeat, United have picked up just four points from their opening four league matches.
They will aim to return to winning ways tonight, but it won’t be easy against a Brighton side, who have already scored 17 goals from six appearances this campaign.
They have also won in four of the previous five trips to Old Trafford, and United must play at their best to progress. We predict manager Michael Carrick to make three changes.
Formation: 4-2-3-1
Predicted Line-up:
Senne Lammens has been United’s preferred goalkeeper since his debut in October last year. Carrick has the option of handing a debut to summer signing Karl Darlow between the sticks but may not take a risk against an in-form Brighton outfit, who don’t shy away from attempting regular shots.
There could be two changes to the backline from the recent loss to Man City. Dorgu had a forgettable outing as a left-back and was largely responsible for the goal conceded. We anticipate him to make way. Based on Carrick’s pre-match comments, we believe Luke Shaw could be deemed fit to return to the starting XI after missing the last two matches due to fitness concerns.
Diogo Dalot likewise had an average outing at right-back in the derby and there could be a straight swap with Noussair Mazraoui. Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez are the best central defensive pairing on paper with Matthijs de Ligt still recovering from a back issue. We don’t expect Carrick to experiment with Leny Yoro or Ayden Heaven in defence.
Similarly, we don’t see any changes in the centre of the park. Youri Tielemans had a good derby, and we were quite surprised that he was taken off. The Belgian has formed good chemistry with Kobbie Mainoo in the heart of the midfield, and the duo should start together. Tielemans has been successful against Brighton in the past with five assists.
The other big change could come upfront. We expect Bryan Mbeumo and Marcus Rashford to continue out wide. The pair came closest to scoring during the Manchester derby. Captain Bruno Fernandes is a guaranteed starter in the number 10 role, though Matheus Cunha could make way for Benjamin Sesko to lead the line.
Cunha has struggled as a number nine this term and could be replaced by Sesko, who could be more effective against Brighton’s high line. He could get behind the Seagulls’ defence with his raw pace, in our view. The Slovenian has had a fine start to the season, with two goals in just over 140 minutes in all competitions.
How Man Utd could line up vs Brighton
Stats from Transfermarkt.com