Manchester United are back in Premier League action on Saturday tea-time when they make the relatively short trip to Molineux to take on Wolverhampton Wanderers. The top versus bottom clash is a vital game for both sides as they battle towards their respective end of season goals. United will be looking to put on a decent away performance in a season where these have been few and far between. They have won only three of their eleven top flight games away from Old Trafford with the same common denominator - Javier Hernandez has scored in all three.
For anyone who thinks that tomorrow's encounter will be a comfortable away victory - a word of warning! Look in the record books and you will see that United visited Molineux in January 2004 when the home side were in an equally precarious position in the table and to everyone's surprise managed a 1-0 victory courtesy of a Kenny Miller strike. To redress the balance, United have won every game against Wolves in all competitions since.
Twice, Mick McCarthy's men have faced United this season, and twice they have been denied at the death. Firstly, in the Carling Cup back in late October when United were twice pegged back before super sub Hernandez waltzed his way through the Wolves defence before slotting home the winner. The league fixture, played just eleven days later, once again saw a United lead snuffed out before a last gasp winner from Ji Sung Park (his second of the game) saw the home side through to a valuable three points.
The Opposition
Wolves go into the game on a poor run of form. They have lost their last three matches but can boast a run of 3 wins from their last 6 home games. To explain the severity of the task facing the side from the "Black Country", they have lost more matches than any other team in the top flight this season and currently have a haul of just 21 points from their 20 games.
Their leading scorer is Scotsman Steven Fletcher who has a tally of six from all competitions. They have been boosted by the arrival on loan of Jamie O'Hara from Spurs who made his debut coming on as a sub in their latest defeat this week against Bolton Wanderers. He will benefit from a decent run in the side having been out injured for a while and will bring some much needed quality to the Wolves ranks.
The home team boast two former United players amongst their squad. The first is Sylvan Ebanks-Blake who scored at his former ground in the corresponding fixture, has made just nine starts in the league this season with a further ten appearances via substitute. He has found that leaving Old Trafford is never easy and although he was one of the main reasons that Wolves were promoted to the Premier League in 2009, he was unable to sustain a record of 25 goals from the year before as Wolves tried to establish themselves once more.
The second ex Red Devil is David Jones, who many will remember captaining the U19 squad to FA Youth Cup glory in 2003. After failing to break into the first team squad on a regular basis, various loan spells ensued before the talented midfielder left for Derby where he made 32 appearances in 2007-08. Jones moved to Wolves in 2008 on a free transfer. This season has seen 15 appearances in all competitions with two goals, the first of which was a cracker on the opening day of the season against Stoke.
Key Player - Matt Jarvis
The 5ft 6" winger was signed from Gillingham in June 2007 and has a record of 120 games for Wolves with eleven goals. Although he is left footed, the 24 year old can play on either flank and has played up front on occasions. His first season in the top flight saw him play in 34 of the 38 league games and the continuation of this form saw him tipped for an England call up earlier this season. He is a good crosser of the ball and will have to be closely watched by the United full backs.
His claim to fame (and my pointless fact of the day) is that he is the son of parents who were both once ranked number one in England for table tennis!
United Thoughts
This may be one of the "easier" team selections unless Sir Alex decides to throw in a major surprise or a late injury crops up. The back five are likely to be the recognised first choice with the return of Rafael at right back in place of John O'Shea. The Irishman has had a solid couple of games filling in for the concussed youngster. He is a dependable and vital member of the squad whose key asset is his versatility. Equally adept in any position across the back four, O'Shea is the type of player that makes the most of his ability and will be highly thought of in and around Old Trafford. United fans will remember his heroics as stand in goal keeper against Spurs a few years back after Edwin took a nasty blow. I am sure Robbie Keane was reminded a few times at international gatherings about the vital block that O'Shea managed to deny the on rushing striker!
The centre of midfield selection is the major dilemma once more for Sir Alex. My prediction is for Carrick and Scholes. Anderson was average in my opinion when he came on against Villa on Tuesday. At the moment, his inconsistency is frustrating many United fans. He has been brilliant in several home games sparking talk of him finally finding the level needed to establish himself at Manchester United but also it is hard to remember the last away game that he excelled in. Maybe he is suited to a three man centre midfield where he can roam and use his energy and not worry so much about the defensive side. Darren Fletcher was subbed in the first half on Tuesday with a cut to the eye region and although Sir Alex thinks he will be ready for Wolves, I suspect a starting place on the bench is likely.
Paul Scholes was an unused sub against Villa so I would suspect he will get the nod against Wolves. It is also a return for the little genius to the place where he scored the winner last year. He is in need of games following his return from injury and his accurate passing and composure have been missed by the Reds.
Michael Carrick gave one of his best displays of the season on Tuesday as mentioned in my review of the game on Wednesday. A fully fit and firing Carrick gives United a solid base in the centre. His breaking up of the play recently has been very good and it shows that this can be done without launching into numerous tackles. What Carrick does well is intercept and nick the ball from an opponent before laying off a pass to a well placed team mate. It may not always get noticed but it is mightily effective and helps keep United on the front foot from an attacking perspective. Because his efforts are not always seen as readily as others, he can often come in for some criticism from fans when not playing at his best. However, it is my view that when Carrick plays well, so do United. Backing this up was a glowing tribute from Xabi Alonso who rates him highly and feels that he does not get the praise in this country that his qualities deserve.
Giggs and Nani continued their fine form this week so should be selected in the wide areas once more. The return of Park from the Asia Cup will be a welcome boost to the squad on the flanks as competition for places has been missing recently in that area. This will increase still further when Antonio Valencia returns over the next month or so. The Ecuadorian has been sorely missed since his horrific injury against Rangers in September but caution must be exerted as it can never be certain how well a player reacts after such a layoff. The psychological and mental scars may well need a while to be overcome so it is possible that we only see the best of the player next season.
Up front, barring injury will surely be Rooney and Berbatov. These two should terrorise opponents from now to the end of the season. Two goals from Rooney on Tuesday will hopefully bring his confidence flooding back and set him up for one of his traditional bursts of scoring. With the amount of movement and changing of position that these two accrue during a game, defenders struggle to know who to pick up and how far to follow them across the pitch. This can then leave space in the box for runners from the wing or midfield. Starting from Tuesday, I would expect both strikers to rack up plenty of goals as we head towards the climax of the season and if they both fulfill this aim then United are clearly going to be very difficult to stop bearing in mind the solidity of our back five.
Score Prediction
I am going to go for a 0-2 scoreline with goals from Rooney and Nani. Wolves will make it tough but the longer the game goes, the more United will express their superiority and a goal in each half will see the three points return up the M6 motorway.
Please leave any comments below and you can also follow me on Twitter.
No comments:
Post a Comment