Manchester United vs Crystal Palace
Old Trafford forms the backdrop for an exciting Premier League encounter between Manchester United and Crystal Palace.
Manchester United saw off FSCB 2-0 on the road in midweek Europa League action to qualify for the round of 16 as the only team to avoid defeat in all eight league-phase outings (W5, D3). Fresh of becoming the second Man Utd boss after Sir Alex Ferguson to win his first four European games in charge of the club, Ruben Amorim bids to inspire the Red Devils to back-to-back Premier League wins for the first time this season following a narrow 1-0 triumph at Fulham last weekend. Back to Old Trafford, where they’ve suffered an alarming four defeats from five league games since the start of December (W1), they’ll be out to end an underwhelming three-game scoring drought against Crystal Palace (D1, L2), bookended by a scoreless draw in September’s reverse fixture.
In the meantime, Crystal Palace slipped to a 2-1 home loss to fellow London rivals Brentford last weekend, relinquishing a six-game unbeaten streak in all competitions (W4, D2). Oliver Glasner’s side had kept a clean sheet in three previous competitive matches, bolstering their hopes of keeping Man Utd at bay in consecutive visits to Old Trafford for the first time. Adding to Palace’s confidence, they’ve not conceded in any of their last three away games in domestic football (W2, D1), with both wins yielding an identical 2-0 scoreline. Another victory would see the Eagles post a third successive road win in the Premier League for the first time since May 2019.