Manchester United returns to Premier League action this weekend when they travel to Newcastle United.
Erik ten Hag’s team was coming off a bruising Champions League tie against Manchester United, which should have resulted in a win. Nonetheless, they’re doing well in the Premier League. The manager and his coaching staff have led the first-team squad to three wins in three games in November, culminating in a 3-0 thrashing at Goodison Park.
A trip to Tyneside, on the other hand, will be a very other task. The Red Devils are bracing themselves for a slugfest.
Paul Merson predicts Newcastle United vs Manchester United
Paul Merson, for one, believes Saturday will be a difficult assignment for Ten Hag’s team. He said the following about the game, then predicted the score (via Sportskeeda).
‘After their midweek games, both of these teams must be devastated. Newcastle must have thought they had qualified before PSG scored just before the final whistle. They were fantastic, but a travesty of a VAR ruling ruined their party.’
‘Manchester United continues to blow leads. With a 3-1 score against Galatasaray, it seemed like a basketball game. It was really open. Erik ten Hag must realize that he is no longer in charge of Ajax.’
‘He needs to learn how to close his shop. You are not required to entertain all of the time. Sometimes it’s necessary to be pragmatic. By the way, I believe their chances of reaching the Champions League knockout stages remain viable. Because Bayern has already qualified, I assume they will field a lesser squad against them.’
‘Manchester United are more ruthless than Chelsea, but Newcastle were fantastic last weekend and I’d be surprised if they don’t win this week.’
- Paul Merson’s Prediction: Newcastle United 3-1 Manchester United
Paul Merson on Manchester United’s problems
He also discussed the reasons behind his prediction of a Manchester United loss:
‘United are facing some challenges they need to address. Firstly, Hakim Ziyech scored two goals that Andre Onana, as the club’s goalkeeper, should have saved. It was a highly disappointing performance, and such errors from a goalkeeper in a big club can’t continue to cost the team important victories.’
‘United removed De Gea from the club with the general belief that they would be competitive for titles with a superior goalkeeper. However, the situation hasn’t improved with Onana, has it?’
‘Secondly, there’s a need to have faith in Kobbie Mainoo playing as the defensive midfielder. Mainoo performed admirably against Everton recently, and it’s unclear why Sofyan Amrabat was chosen against Galatasaray. Perhaps they wanted to avoid putting a young player in a challenging environment like RAMS Park.’
‘Nevertheless, if a player is skilled enough, their age shouldn’t be a barrier. Mainoo should be the starter here, but despite that, I don’t anticipate Manchester United prevailing against Newcastle United.’
The match between the Red Devils and Newcastle is scheduled for 8:00 PM GMT on Saturday, December 2nd, 2023. Let’s hope Merson’s prediction turns out to be incorrect.
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