Manchester United central defender Victor Lindelof said the win over ninth place Brighton & Hove Albion was important because it showed that United can still win when they’re having an off day. Now the Red Devils will travel to Watford, and take on the Hornets, a side that is the next spot above the Seagulls in the Premier League table.
United will be without the services of three players tomorrow night at Vicarage Road- Michael Carrick, Phil Jones and Eric Bailly.
It’s a good thing that Marcos Rojo completed 90 minutes of action in the loss at FC Basel last week, because injuries are depleting the central defender position right now. United come into this one as very strong favorites. If you are looking at what is matched betting, i.e. when bookmakers give money away in the form of bonuses and free bets, then you must also consider what the odds are for this match, and we’re typically seeing United backed at 4/6, with odds for a draw at 14/5 typically. The underdogs Watford are usually seeing 4/1 from the bookies.
We have Rojo slated to start in our MUFC starting XI prediction.
Michael Carrick is also out of action for this one as he continues to recover from a heart condition, the details of which he just revealed this past Friday. Over the weekend, manager Jose Mourinho revealed that an assistant coaching position is waiting for the team captain once he decides he’s ready to retire.
On the flip side, Watford, who head into this clash eighth in the table with 21 points, will be without the services of four players: defenders Craig Cathcart (knee) and Younes Kaboul (hamstring), midfielder Nathaniel Chalobah (knee) and forward Isaac Success (knee).
However, star man and team captain Troy Deeney is now back from a suspension.
Prediction: United 2, Watford 1
As always feel free to post your own MUFC starting XI and match score predictions in the comments section below.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, currently contributes regularly to WGN CLTV and the Tribune company’s blogging community Chicago Now.
Follow him on Twitter, Instagram, Sound Cloud, LinkedIn and YouTube.