Manchester United take on Chelsea tonight hoping to win for the first time in nine trips to Stamford Bridge. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be looking for a response from his player’s after the loss to PSG in the week, but who will he pick in his starting lineup?
Ollie Slack
Chris Smalling comes into the back four in my starting XI in the place of Eric Bailly. The Ivory Coast international was not particularly poor against the PSG, however, he was at fault for Kylian Mbappe’s goal, failing to cut out the cross from Angel Di Maria at the front post.
Smalling’s presence against strong solo-centre-forwards has been very useful in the past. He always seems to perform better against a Harry Kane or Alexandra Mitrovic type player. Tonight’s match against Gonzalo Higuain will be another tricky test, though.
With Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard injured, Alexis Sanchez and one other come into the starting lineup. I expect Tahith Chong to possibly come into the match later on.
It was a tough call between Romelu Lukaku and Juan Mata, for the other starting spot. Two very different opponents but I thought both could add value to United’s attack against Chelsea. If the Blues are going to try and press Solskjaer’s men as they did against City last week, then you need a man who is strong in possession like Mata. However, with Marcos Alonso struggling in Maurizio Sarri’s system, evident on last week’s display at the Ethiad, I thought Romelu Lukaku might be able to steamroll the Spaniard tonight.
David de Gea
Ashley Young, Chris Smalling, Victor Lindelof, Luke Shaw
Ander Herrera, Nemanja Matic, Paul Pogba
Romelu Lukaku, Marcus Rashford, Alexis Sanchez
Ali Akbar
Lindelof and Bailly looked good for most of the game against PSG so this should be the starting centre-back partnership against Chelsea and beyond.
Dalot’s accurate crossing would be a useful asset against Chelsea’s tall back four. However, he isn’t disciplined enough defensively, so Young should keep the right-back spot.
This midfield three was poor against PSG, but Solskjaer should resist the temptation to switch things up. Herrera’s inclusion in the starting XI will be vital in particular – given his man-marking ability.
Since Lingard and Martial are injured, Chong and Sanchez should play either side of Rashford, with Lukaku coming off the bench in the second half for either of them if necessary.
David de Gea
Ashley Young, Eric Bailly, Victor Lindelof, Luke Shaw
Ander Herrera, Nemanja Matic, Paul Pogba
Tahith Chong, Marcus Rashford, Alexis Sanchez