Man Utd – Villa; Will things be different?

I’m not sure you can hate a fixture, but if you can, it has to be this one doesn’t it?
I look at it not quite with dread, but more a massive sense of resignation.
Our record is so bad that if you were to actually look through things, it wouldn’t surprise me if this is one of the most one sided fixtures ever, anywhere in the English game over say a twenty year period.
Certainly no team has beaten any other more in the history of the Premier league.
How annoying is that?

I’ve seen talk of how Man Utd are bound to get a penalty or two and it’s true, they usually do.
So how ironic was it for Ole Gunnar Solksjaer to talk about how they hadn’t had enough penalties this season after Jurgen Klopp suggested that Man U had had more penalties in two years than Liverpool had got in five and a half years.
The clip then went on to show some of Utd’s game against West Ham in the midweek and there it was. Utd were denied as blatant a penalty as you’ll ever see. I did laugh.
It’s nice to see they get poorly treated on occasions too, but everybody knows it doesn’t make any difference and they’ve had way more than their fair share over the years.

Straight to squad news then and Bailey and Sanson are both out, which is worrying, as they’ve only just come back from injuries. Dean Smith continues to talk utter rubbish when it comes to injuries, but if he’s to be believed, Bailey might be ok by the time the World cup qualifiers are over.
Sanson only has a “little injury” which is a great relief yet it’s going to keep him out for a month. I can only say it’s a good job he isn’t seriously injured.
I like Dean Smith, but he doesn’t half talk some tosh when it comes to injuries and it annoys me.
I’ve seen talk that John McGinn will be out after his concussion, but the man himself seems to say that he’s ok and he’ll play.
Otherwise, it’s the same old and I don’t see much changing. The only issues are 3 or 4 at the back. Tuanzebe can’t play in this one, as he’s ineligible so I’m guessing it will be 4. Come to think of it, is there any option? Whereas we’ve talked recently about how much squad depth has improved, take Tuanzebe out and we suddenly look very thin at the back again. Hmm.
And then it’s a choice of Ashley Young or Matt Targett for the left back position. Targett has been out of form recently, but I’d prefer him to get back in it, as he was so good last season. I think Smith might think the same, but I’m sure Ash will get on the pitch, so he can face his old team mates.

As for Man U, Cavani will be assessed before the game and Marcus Rashford is out for a few weeks.

So while Solskjaer says Utd are more than the Cristiano Ronaldo show, we all know how good he can be and he’s the one we’re going to have to try and stop. I really didn’t think he’d be as effective this time round, but he’s already proving me wrong and he’s got 3 goals in 2 games.
Can we stop him? Well it doesn’t matter as a player of his calibre just finds a way to score doesn’t he? No matter how good a defence is. It’s going to be difficult.

But certainly not impossible. I think we’re definitely capable of beating Utd now, which is not something I’ve felt much over the years. I’d like to think we will beat them too, but feel we’re still not quite at that level that gives us the mindset required to beat them.
I think we’ll score. But Man Utd are the highest scorers this season and they rarely fail to score against us. So they’re going to score too.
Unfortunately, I think they’ll score more and I’m struggling to see past a 1-2 defeat.

Here’s hoping.
UTV!