Manchester United will travel to Craven Cottage to take on relegation fighters Fulham on Wednesday as they look to extend their lead atop the Premier League.
The home side fell to local rivals Chelsea over the weekend after five consecutive previous league draws, which means they still haven’t achieved a win since defeating Leicester in November.
United, meanwhile, missed two big missed opportunities against champions Liverpool by drawing 0-0 at Anfield, while retaining their record as the only side to lose away this season in the Premier League.
When is the kick-off? Wednesday January 20
What time is the kick-off? 8:15 p.m. (GMT)
Where is it played? Cottage Craven
TV channel / live broadcast? BT Sport 1 (UK), fuboTV (US)
Arbitrator? Martin atkinson
Scott Parker is without first-choice left-back Antonee Robinson after his first half red card against Chelsea, but will once again welcome Ruben Loftus-Cheek who was not eligible against his parent club.
Mario Lemina and Tom Cairney are excluded from the game due to knee injuries, but Aleksandar Mitrovic is back in good shape after taking a hit against Queens Park Rangers.
Fulham’s Antonee Robinson sent off for a slot against Chelsea – was that the right choice?
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For Manchester United, Solskjaer may consider putting three regular starters to rest to avoid suspension. Bruno Fernandes, Luke Shaw and captain Harry Maguire are all one yellow card away from missing a game, but with the threshold dropping to ten yellows after that game, they could miss this one.
Eric Bailly, Donny van de Beek and Alex Telles could all start, while Marcus Rashford could be rested as well.
Fulham: Areola; Aina, Andersen, Adarabioyo; Tete, Reed, Anguissa, Bryan; Cavaleiro, Loftus-Cheek, Decordova-Reid.
Manchester United: De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Bailly, Telles; Matic, Pogba; Greenwood, Van de Beek, Martial; Cavani.
Fulham
Fulham 0-1 Chelsea (16/1)
Tottenham 1-1 Fulham (13/1)
QPR 0-2 Fulham (9/1)
Fulham 0-0 Southampton (12/26)
Newcastle 1-1 Fulham (19/12)
Manchester United
Liverpool 0-0 Manchester United (17/1)
Burnley 0-1 Manchester United (12/1)
Manchester United 1-0 Watford (9/1)
Manchester United 0-2 Man City (6/1)
Manchester United 2-1 Aston Villa (1/1)
Breakthrough for #MUFC! ?
Paul Pogba’s deflected shot gives them the advantage at Turf Moor…
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On paper it should be a routine win for the league leaders, but the performances on the pitch mean it should be a well-contested game.
Fulham has a good pace on the counterattack which has been a problem for United in the past, while their strength in midfield will see them rival. Solskjaer’s side have however shown an ability to control games recently, with Paul Pogba’s fine form largely.
Although Fulham has defended well they have conceded goals and trying to attack more will leave themselves exposed to United’s own threat of a counterattack. With the quality of the Reds offensive players, they should be able to find their way through the hosts and collect all three points.
Prediction: Fulham 0-2 Manchester United
