This Tuesday night, two tough teams fighting for a place in Europe next season will face each other at Old Trafford.
Manchester United are still on a 19 match unbeaten run in the Premier League, but they have failed to meet up with the task in recent weeks picking up home draws against Bournemouth and West Bromwich Albion.
The Toffees are looking to return back to their winning ways after a poor performance in the Merseyside derby against Liverpool this past weekend and they’ll be looking to achieve their first EPL victory at Old Trafford since the 2013/14 season.
Team News & Predicted Lineups
The Red Devils will welcome back the return of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Ander Herrera from domestic ban for their clash on Tuesday night. French international Paul Pogba is likely to return to the starting xi that will face Everton as he was pictured training after Saturday’s match at Old Trafford, but Jose Mourinho is still without defensive players such as Chris Smalling and Phil Jones.
Everton, on the other hand, Morgan Schneiderlin is a major doubt to face his former side as he is recovering from a calf strain. Ronald Koeman might consider starting the XI that feature in the Merseyside derby, but he may bring in Gareth Barry to provide an experience solid head in the midfield.
Man Utd Predicted XI: De Gea, Valencia, Rojo, Bailly, Young, Pogba, Herrera, Carrick, Martial, Lingard, Ibrahimovic
Everton Predicted XI: Robles, Pennington, Williams, Baines, Holgate, Barry, Gueye, Baines, Barkley, Lukaku, Valencia
Prediction
This match is set to be a very fascinating match as both teams will feel that it’s a must-win.
Manchester United could find themselves just two points behind top four with a win, having recorded more draws at home than any other team in the Premier League this season.
Everton have only managed one clean sheet against any of the sides in the top six this season. The Toffees have also failed to win an away match since beating Crystal Palace at the end of January.
It’s likely to be a tight and catchy affair and Manchester United might have to settle for another Old Trafford draw.
Prediction: Manchester United 1-1 Everton
Key Battles
Romelu Lukaku vs Marcos Rojo
Similar to many games against the top sides this campaign, the EPL top goal-scorer Romelu Lukaku went missing against Liverpool this past Saturday.
The Belgain forward hasn’t scored a Premier League goal against the Manchester giants in four years and with United suffering from a lot on injuries in defence, Lukaku might get the chance the see the net this Tuesday night.
Argentine, Marcos Rojo has been a revelation for Jose Mourinho this season. He has developed a fantastic partnership with Phil Jones and the two have played a crucial role in Red Devil’s current unbeaten run in the league.
It was at Goodison Park earlier on in the season where the Argentine international was superbly lucky not to receive a red card for a two-footed challenge on Idrissa Gueye.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic vs Ashley Williams
United welcomes the return Zlatan Ibrahimovic back to the team.
The former Paris Saint-Germain forward has missed his side last three league matches as he was given a ban for elbowing Bournemouth defender Tyrone Mings in United’s last month 1-1 draw at Old Trafford.
The Swede was greatly missed on the weekend as they failed to create many clear cut chances against a very stubborn Baggies side, but Zlatan will surely star on Tuesday night and look to add to his tally of 15 league goals.
Ashley Williams was given a tough time when their side clashed with Liverpool on Saturday and he’ll have to perform better as he comes up against one of the best striker in European football.
Zlatan is going to be one of the hardest thing of the Welshman’s season and should be pass it with flying colours, Everton will have a great chance.
Classic Encounter (Manchester United 4-4 Everton, April 2012)
This was the classic encounter that effectively blew the title race wide open out of United’s hands.
Then in-charge manager Sir Alex Ferguson men were on the brink of winning the Premier League title and a win would’ve put his side in the driving seat ahead of the upcoming Manchester derby. While David Moyes was in-charge, the encounter had other ideas.
The Red Devils recovered from an early Nikica Jelavic goal and replied with strikes from Wayne Rooney, Nani, and Danny Welbeck with 30 minutes to go. Former Everton midfielder Marouane Fellaini got a goal back for the Toffees but Rooney bagged his second and seemingly put an end to the game.
Patrice Evra had the chance to wrap up the match but missed an opportunity as his goal hit the post from close range. This would turn out to a costly miss as Jelavic saw the net second before Steven Pienaar incredibly levelled the score with five minutes remaining.
They couldn’t find a later winner and would end the season without a trophy as Manchester City secured their first ever EPL title thanks to that unforgettable Sergio Aguero goal.