MANCHESTER UNITED continue their Europa League campaign on Thursday with a club to Belgium. Daniel McCulloch (@DMcCulloch1984) shares his views.
Club Brugge v Manchester United | Thursday 20th February 2020, 17:55 | BT Sport
Having faced Chelsea less than 72 hours ago, Manchester United staff and players must feel a little hard done by, having to travel to Belgium for a Europa League game.
Despite a pleasing 2-0 victory over Chelsea, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was quick to question why they had a game scheduled for Monday night, with this fixture with Bruges in the calendar for some time and I wouldn't be at all surprised if he is using it as an excuse come Thursday night.
Club Brugge are currently nine points clear domestically and come in to this competition having finished third in a Champions League group featuring Real Madrid, PSG and Galatasaray. While they lost three of their four matches to the two powerhouses, they did go 2-0 up in Madrid (and missed glorious chances to score a third) and despite a single goal defeat in Paris, they actually outshot their opponents 14-10.
Manchester United meanwhile were far from convincing in reaching this stage of the competition. Along with a defeat to Astana, they managed just one shot on-target in games away to Partizan and AZ Alkmaar. While they did feel weakened teams in those matches, their attacking play generally has left a lot to be desired this term.
The Red Devils have lost six of their 13 away matches domestically this term, failing to score in any of those defeats. While they've produced some good displays on the road – notably at The Etihad and Stamford Bridge – they've also lost to Newcastle, Bournemouth and Watford.
Simply put, I can't have United as favourites in a game in which I am pretty sure they would take a draw in. My first bet is therefore Bruges Draw No Bet at 117/100 with Marathon.
Alongside this, I also like the look of Both Teams To Score – No at 21/20 with BetVictor. Such an outcome has landed in 10 of United's 16 matches in the Premier League and Europa League this season and I think this is excellent value in what I expect to be a tightly fought game.
Best Bets
Club Brugge v Manchester United – Club Brugge Draw No Bet (117/10 Marathon)
Club Brugge v Manchester United – Both Teams To Score ‘No' (21/20 BetVictor)
