MANCHESTER United host Everton on Super Sunday at Old Trafford. Jack Lambden (@_JackL_) analyses the encounter.
Manchester United v Everton | Sunday 16th December 2019, 14:00 | Sky Sports
A week is a long time in football and following three wins in eight days, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer can breath a little easier now he isn’t immediately staring down the barrel of losing his job.
The performances against Tottenham, Manchester City and AZ Alkmaar would have pleased the United supporters almost as much as the results did, particularly going forward although they won’t be shouting about Ole being at the wheel until a run of positive form is sustained.
The youngsters that came into the side against AZ showed themselves to be more than capable and some of them, Mason Greenwood especially, could be knocking on the door for a start in Sunday’s match.
Whilst goals have been flowing recently, United still often look unstable at the back and are on a run of 11 Premier League matches without a clean sheet. The excitement at both ends of the pitch means that the Red Devils have seen their last eight games go Over 2.5 Goals and this fixture is no stranger to goals, 11 of the last 12 head-to-heads seeing more than one goal scored.
Although Everton will be keen to repeat the 4-0 win over United back in April, a rare high point in Marco Silva’s reign, their record at Old Trafford is horrendous having recorded just one win at the Theatre of Dreams in over 27 years.
Given those trends at United’s recent upturn, I’m happy to back Manchester United to win and Over 1.5 Goals at 11/10 with Betway. If the likes of Marcus Rashford, Dan James and Anthony Martial can replicate their recent form if they all start, I’d be confident that they’ll have too much for this Everton backline.
Duncan Ferguson has been tasked with the responsibility for leading Everton on Sunday with the club happy to leave the team in his capable hands after such a positive response in last weekend’s 3-1 win over Chelsea.
The main theme of that victory was the aggression on show which was such a marked change from the timid, often one-paced displays that the squad produced week in, week out under Marco Silva. Ferguson is likely to stick with the same starting eleven from that negotiated that Chelsea win if Sidibie and Walcott recover in time from knocks picked up in that match.
A standout statistic from last weekend’s match for the Blues was Everton as a team putting in 36 tackles which surely has to be Ferguson’s influence. Everton have registered a high number of tackles all season, sitting second behind Leicester for that marker, but the 36 number was a spike from the previous match as an example, a much smaller number of 19 against main rivals Liverpool.
Therefore, the same price as my first selection, 11/10, is available at SkyBet on Everton to register 23 or more tackles which I’m happy to get behind.
Everton may not come away from Old Trafford with a result but expect them to make their mark, quite literally, on their short trip via the M62.
Best Bets
Manchester United v Everton – Manchester United to win and Over 1.5 Goals (11/10 Betway)
Manchester United v Everton – Everton 23+ team tackles (11/10 SkyBet)
