Premier League Preview: Swansea host in-form Manchester United
Will Jose Mourinho’s men make it two wins in a row on Saturday?
Prithviraj Dev | New Delhi | August 18, 2017 7:27 pm
Manchester United will look to continue their great start to the Premier League when they visit an under-confident Swansea City side at the Liberty Stadium in Wales on Saturday.
The Red Devils thrashed West Ham on the opening weekend and against a side that have just sold their star man (Gylfi Sigurdsson), should, in theory at least have no problems against.
Swansea City
The Icelandic midfielder’s departure has left a massive hole in the Swans attack, of that there is no doubt.
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Their opener against Southampton, a scoreless draw, wasn’t the worst display but playing against a free-flowing United side is a different matter altogether.
Among the bookies favourites to go down, the Swans will have to frustrate United and hope to hit them on the counter if they are to upset the odds.
Star striker Fernando Llorente’s arm injury has robbed them of a physical presence but Paul Clement will hope new signing Tammy Abraham’s 6’4 frame will trouble United’s defence on set-pieces.
Talking Corner: They were very good in their opening game and the new players have gelled very quickly. But we are at home with our fans behind us, so we are confident too. ~Swansea City midfielder Leroy Fer (www.swansea.com)
Injury concerns: Fernando Llorente (arm), Leon Britton (back), Nathan Dyer (Achilles)
Suspension Alert: None
Manchester United
Mourinho sprung a surprise in the opener, bringing in Juan Mata but the diminutive Spaniard wasn’t particularly effective, which might prompt him to bring back Ander Herrera into the fold.
Another change is possible on the wing, for Anthony Martial scored a brilliant goal after coming off the bench and could be in line to start at the expense of Marcus Rashford.
Romelu Lukaku was on fire in the opener and the United faithful will hope for an encore in Wales as they seek to put together a good run early on in the season.
New boy Nemanja Matic proved his worth with an excellent display on his debut and alongside Paul Pogba, could form an impressive midfield partnership for the years to come.
Talking Corner: The season is long and we have a difficult game on Saturday. We have to focus on that. It’s always hard to win at that stadium, they are a good team. ~Manchester United midfielder Nemanja Matic (MUTV)
Injury concerns: Ashley Young (hamstring), Luke Shaw (ankle), Marcos Rojo (knee)
Suspension Alert: None
Super Stat: United haven’t done well in their recent trips to Swansea, having lost two of the last three games at the Liberty Stadium!
Liverpool travel to east London after a derby defeat to Everton on Wednesday dealt a massive blow to their title hopes, leaving them third in the table, two points behind Manchester City and three behind Arsenal, with City having a game in hand.
The semi-automated system gives a result in around 30 seconds, while VAR calls can take several minutes, frustrating players and also fans, who are often uninformed about what is happening.