Manchester United‘s Premier League game against Brighton at Old Trafford will not be live on TV in the UK despite originally being scheduled to be televised on BT Sport on 18 December.
The match was postponed following a Covid outbreak at United’s training ground and has been rearranged for Tuesday night at the unusual time of 8.15pm.
A late kick-off was set to avoid clashing with the start of the Champions League last-16 ties with Paris Saint-German hosting Real Madrid and Manchester City playing Sporting Lisbon which will be shown live on BT Sport instead.
Fixtures come thick and fast this month as Ralf Rangnick has plans to rotate players for “some fresh energy” ahead of United’s meeting with Atletico Madrid in the Champions League – the club’s sixth in February.
More on Premier League
Newcastle are firing themselves to safety by keeping the ball out of play longer than rivals15 February, 2022
Tottenham are in meltdown and this time Antonio Conte has to accept his share of the blame14 February, 2022
Kieran Trippier ruled out of 'upcoming fixtures' with broken foot in huge blow for Newcastle14 February, 2022During his pre-match press conference he said: “We have quite a few games coming up, every three or four days, and that’s why it’s good for me as manager that I have enough players, two players for each position, in order to give some players a rest and others a chance to perform.”
Eric Bailly has not played for the Red Devils this calendar year but returned to training after recovering from a swollen ankle. Harry Maguire may need an opportunity to rest following his questionable run of form but Rangnick defended the centre back saying that he does not see a reason to remove him as captain.
Raphael Varane may give way for Bailly despite being “willing and able to play again” since the manager remains vigilant to protect the Frenchman, who has missed eight games due to injury this season.
Despite the squad’s struggles, Fred has found form under the German and returns after testing positive for Covid, as does fellow Brazilian Alex Telles.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s wayward finishing is costing his side
By Daniel Storey, i‘s chief football writer
Manchester United officially have a Cristiano Ronaldo problem. We knew when Ronaldo signed that he probably wouldn’t do much in the way of pressing, and that has proved true. It’s a fairly crude statistic, but Ronaldo has eight successful tackles and interceptions in the league this season, which ranks 18th amongst United players (and he ranks fifth for minutes played).
We also suspected that latter-stage Ronaldo wouldn’t offer a huge amount of chance creation (although there is a latent threat to him busying central defenders and creating time and space for others). Again, that has certainly been proven. In terms of chances created per 90 minutes spent on the pitch, Ronaldo ranks 156th in the Premier League of those who have made 10 or more appearances) and 15th at Manchester United.
This was all permissible because Ronaldo was an elite finisher – create chances for him and he would score. Well… not really. Ronaldo has scored five goals from 53 shots in the Premier League since his second appearance of the season. His shot-to-goal conversion rate this season ranks him 11th at Manchester United. Again since his second appearance (he scored three in his first two league games), Ronaldo’s chances have a combined expected goals (xG) figure of 7.5 and he’s scored five times. Ronaldo is actually underperforming with his shooting.
The Score is Daniel Storey’s weekly verdict on all 20 Premier League teams’ performances. Sign up here to receive the newsletter every Monday morning
Rangnick at the pre-match conference said: “Fred will be back in the squad which is good for us. We need his energy and also his physicality in midfield.”
Even though Rangnick has plans for rotation, Cristiano Ronaldo, 37, will likely start against Brighton because Edinson Cavani is out with a groin injury sustained in training last Friday.
The Portugal captain may welcome the news of more game time as he wants to play every minute possible shown by his frustrated reaction to being substituted against Brentford.
Man United predicted line-up (4-3-2-1): De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Maguire, Telles; McTominay, Fred; Sancho, Fernandes, Elanga; Ronaldo.
Brighton predicted line-up (3-4-2-1): Sanchez; Veltman, Dunk, Webster; Lamptey, Bissouma, Moder, Cucurella; Mac Allister, Trossard; Maupay.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/lCABkiz
Post a Comment