Patrick Rees
After acquiring the fourth and final player, the Manchester United manager, Jose Mourinho will now be looking forward to start the season on a high note. The Reds will be travelling to the Vitality stadium this Sunday to face Edie Howe’s men, Bournemouth.
Speaking of the transfers, Edie Howe has done a great business so far, as he has signed Liverpool youngsters Jordan Ibe and Brad Smith as well as the Football League’s Young Player of the Year Lewis Cook from Leeds United. Furthermore, the former Watford defender, Nathan Ake has also arrived from Chelsea on a season-long loan.
The last time these two sides met, Manchester United netted an easy 3-1 victory, but Jose Mourinho is well aware of the fact that Vitality stadium isn’t an easy place to visit as the Devils still have the wounds of that 2-1 defeat in December last year.
Bournemouth finished 16th last season and the manager will be looking forward to improve the results and the new players will surely play a big role in that. Talking about the pre-season results, the Cherries played a total of six games; won three and lost none. While, on the other hand, Manchester United face a humiliating defeat against Borussia Dortmund, but they matched it in the game against Galatasaray.
Bournemouth vs Manchester United team news:
For the hosts, the new signing Emerson Hyndman is unlikely to feature as he is suffering from an ankle injury, while Tyrone Mings and Junior Stanislas are also likely to miss out through injury. The other signing Nathan Ake is expected to start the game from the centre, while Ibe and Gradel will be charging from the wings.
The big news for Edie Howe is the return of their star man Callum Wilson. The striker missed most of the time of the last season after rupturing his ACL and now is expected to start the game.
For the visitors, Jose Mourinho does not really have injury issues, but will miss their star defender Chris Smalling, as the Englishman will be serving a one-match suspension on the weekend. Furthermore, the new singing, namely, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Eric Bailly are likely to start, while there are questions over the presence of Paul Pogba, who recently joined the club, but might get his name on the subs.
Predicted Lineup:
Bournemouth-
Boruc
Smith; Cook; Ake; Smith
Ibe; Gosling; Surman; Gradel
Wilson; Afobe
Manchester United:
De Gea
Valencia; Bailly; Blind; Shaw
Carrick; Herrera
Mkhitaryan; Rooney; Martial
Ibrahimovic
What they say:
Michael Carrick told MUTV on Thursday that he expects a tough game on the south coast.
“The league is now so close in terms of the teams that you expected to beat five or six years ago,” he explained. “Now that is not the case – not just with us but a lot of teams, as there were results you just couldn’t predict [last season]. Bournemouth away is not an easy start; they are a good team and obviously beat us there last year. But we are in a different situation with a different team and we’re looking forward to it. We can’t wait to get started.”
Bournemouth full-back Charlie Daniels was looking forward to the visit from United.
“It’s Jose Mourinho’s first [league] game and they’re obviously bringing their new big names to the stadium, which is great,” he said. “We’re eager to recreate the scenes from last year; it was a very important game in our season.”
Prediction:
Agreeing to what Michael Carrick said; a trip to the Vitality stadium can prove to be an unexpected surprise for United just like last time, but unlike 2015, the squad looks confident and the arrival of new names have strengthened Mourinho’s magic.
On the other hand, we cannot ignore the fact that Bournemouth’s young squad looks determined as well, and will be looking to replicate what they did last season. A tough game is expected, but we can expect United clinching the points away from the toffees this time around.
1-3 Manchester United
