Manchester United have the best chance to lead the race for Champions League spot ahead of Chelsea and Leicester City.
Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will hope to emulate his own gaffer’s record as his side takes on Southampton on Monday. As Red Devils look to cement their top 4 chances, here are the things to look forward to before the Old Trafford fixture.
Manchester United vs Southampton (HTH)
The Red Devils have won just 2 of the last 6 Premier League home games against Southampton. However, Hasenhüttl’s Southampton has met Ole’s side just once back in August last year. That match saw newly arrived Daniel James score as the hosts came from behind to draw 1-1.
Interestingly in the post-Ferguson era, United have lost just 2 of the 14 meetings they have had with the Saints, winning as well as drawing 6 times each respectively. No wonder, this fixture is being looked upon as their toughest challenge since their win over Spurs.
Time for rotation or aim for a ‘Fergie Repeat’
One part of Ole’s management has been the development of youngsters. That has United’s recent poster boy Mason Greenwood, followed by Brandon Williams. But the other part has youngster(s) getting frustrated with lack of chances and leaving the club – Angel Gomes. That is why, Mctominay, Chong, or even Garner may be thinking of first-team opportunities when the same squad is being repeated time and again.
However, a constant squad has yielded results too. For the first time, a team has kept a goal margin of 3 goals in 4 straight Premier League games. Bruno and Pogba’s partnership has looked delicious and Matic has done a great job to be a pivot of the midfield.”
However, the last time United played the same team in 5 successive games was in February 1993. Schmeichel, Parker, Bruce, Pallister, Irwin, Sharpe, McClair, Ince, Giggs, Hughes, and Cantona famed the team sheet under Sir Alex Ferguson then.
Emulating Ferguson beyond team sheets
Ole has enjoyed a winning streak even before he signed for United as a permanent manager. But the current streak is even better. Manchester United are unbeaten in 17 games, equal to Mourinho’s best unbeaten spell at United and 1 less than his own gaffer Alex Ferguson’s record of 18 unbeaten matches in 2012-13.
SAF’s streak began with a 3-2 derby victory as the then Los Blancos manager Jose Mourinho finished it. A significant reason for the victorious streak is Bruno Fernandes’s signing. United have not lost a single match since his arrival.
Attacking Prowess
Manchester United has become one of the forces to fear to post the lockdown. While Rashford has become a national icon after he forced the Government to make a U-turn, another youngster has stolen the limelight – Mason Greenwood. His premier league goal count sits at 16, 1 less than Rooney’s goal count in his inaugural season at Old Trafford, 2004-05.
TalkSport’s Jason Cundy eulogized the 18-year-old in the show The Sports Bar. “I think Mason Greenwood could go down to be the greatest Man United academy player since George Best. He is looking more and more like a player that you think, ‘wow’”, he said.
Solskjaer, too, has believed his attackers a lot. His lament has often been ‘one or two more’. It will be interesting to see if this meeting becomes a goal galore as under Ole or the conventional draw oriented 90-minute humdrum affair.
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