Saiyed Karim
Villarreal are set to host Manchester United in the reverse fixture of the Champions League group stage
Villarreal are set to face Manchester United in the reverse fixture of the Champions League. Man United come into this game as the group leaders with seven points from three games having beaten the Spanish club in their previous meeting. Villarreal, are also level on points after their 2-0 win over Young Boys. Latest Champion’s league odds suggest that Man United are in pole position to top the group if they beat Villarreal this gameweek.
Broadcast and Time
The game is said to be broadcast live on BT Sport 2 at 17:45 GMT
Form (Last 5 matches)
Villarreal: W-W-W-D-L
Manchester United: L-D-W-L-W
Villarreal come into this game with a better form compared to Man Utd. Ole’s men would be looking to put the Man City derby defeat behind them and seal the group stage qualification.
Injuries and Suspensions
Villarreal:
Injuries: – A. D. Groeneveld, Yéremi Pino, Gerard Moreno, Juan Foyth
Suspensions: – Nil
Manchester United:
Injuries: – Paul Pogba, Scott McTominay, Luke Shaw (Doubtful), Édinson Cavani (Doubtful), Raphael Varane
Suspensions: – Nil
Line-ups
Villarreal: – Rulli; Mandi, Albiol, P Torres; Pino, Parejo, Capoue, Coquelin, Pedraza; Alcacer, Danjuma
Manchester United: David De Gea, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Victor Lindelof, Raphael Varane, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Scott McTominay, Fred, Bruno Fernandes, Edinson Cavani and Cristiano Ronaldo
Predictions
Villarreal 2-4 Manchester United
Unai Emery’s side are suffering from injuries in key positions especially at the back of the defence with Juan Foyth likely to miss out once again. A 3-5-3 lineup with Aissa Mandi in the back three would likely be Emery’s choice heading into the game. Gerard Moreno who suffered his second hamstring injury of the season could miss the game which would mean Villarreal will lineup with Arnaut Danjuma and Paco Alcacer in the final third.
As for Solskjaer, Pogba joins Varane in the injury list and is set to miss 8-10 weeks. The likes of Cavani, Shaw are doubtful after their latest niggles. While Ole mentioned that a couple of players suffered knocks in the training sessions, he has also added that it was nothing serious.
