There is probably no greater pleasant surprise in the Premier League this season than Sheffield United. Manager Chris Wilder has his newly-promoted side sitting fifth place right now, with one more point on the season than the giant club coming to visit them.
If the Blades win on Sunday, they will be no worse than five points off the pace of the top four. With a defeat of Arsenal and draws against Chelsea and Tottenham on their resume already, when will we stop calling these wins “upsets?” I mean at some point, we need to realize that Sheffield United is indeed legit.
In looking at the team news for this one, Red Devils midfielder Scott McTominay suffered an ankle injury during the win at Brighton last weekend and he’s out for this match, and longer, after having withdrawn from Scotland this international break.
United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said the young Scotsman will be out for “a couple of weeks.”
Meanwhile Paul Pogba is on the comeback trail after having the cast taken off his ankle. However, his return will be awhile yet, perhaps a couple weeks or more down the road.
“He had another test and scan just at the start of the international break and it’s not healed yet,” Solskjaer said of Pogba.
“He’s stepping up the recovery and he doesn’t have to have the cast on. He’s gradually now stepping up, walking on the treadmill, biking. It will still be a few weeks.”
“We hope to see him in 2019.”
Argentine defender Marcos Rojo is also out, for what could be a couple weeks according to OGS, due to a chronic muscle injury that has been bothering him for a bit. The problem kept him out of international duty the past couple of weeks.
Solskjaer will also continue to be without the services of Luke Shaw, Diogo Dalot, Axel Tuanzebe and Nemanja Matic. All are back in training now, but they’re not at the level of match fitness yet. The last of those four names is actively being shopped on the trading block.
Finally, Angel Gomes is still out along with Eric Bailly, but Timothy Fosu-Mensah is back in individual training.
In turning to the Blades, they have just one concern, Dean Henderson, as the goalkeeper not allowed to face his parent club.
Manchester United at Sheffield United FYIs
United Starting XI Prediction: go to this link
Early team news: go to this link
Kickoff: 4:30 BST, Nov 24, Bramall Lane
Google Result Probability: Manchester United win 43%, Draw 30%, Sheffield United win 27%
Form Guide: Sheffield United- DWDWD Manchester United- WLWDL
Odds via Betfair Exchange: Manchester United win 11/8, Draw 12/5, Brighton & Hove Albion 13/5
Prediction: Sheffield United 1, Manchester United 1
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly appears on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
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