Sunderland vs Manchester United preview

August 23, 2014
By: Nemanja Lazarevic

Sunderland vs Man UtdAfter holding West Bromwich to a 2-2 draw at the Hawthorns, Sunderland will attempt to pour more misery on Manchester United when they host Louis van Gaal’s team at the Stadium of Light.

The Red Devils were beaten at home by Swansea and they appear to be in all sorts of problems at the moment as a number of key players are unavailable.

Sunderland had to work hard for the Premiership survival last term, but an excellent run of results in the business end of the season saw them avoid the drop with five points to spare.

Despite operating on a tight budget, the club managed to sign some high-quality players this term, with Jack Rodwell, Jordi Gomez, Costel Pantilimon, Billy Jones, Will Buckley and Patrick van Aanholt all joining.

A number of first team players also departed, meaning Gus Poyet will be forced to do some squad rebuilding this season.

As expected, the Black Cats were far from impressive in the opening fixture against West Brom, but still managed to earn one point which should keep them in a good stead for the Manchester United clash.

Sunderland cannot be seen as favourites to win the game, but they are 2.10 (11/10) to take at least one point from the match.

Defenders Billy Jones and Santiago Vergini are back in contention, but Emanuele Giaccherini continues to miss out with a groin injury.

Probable starting line-up (4-1-4-1): Mannone – Jones, O’Shea, Roberge, van Aanholt – Cattermile – Johnson, Larsson, Rodwell, Wickham – Fletcher.

In spite of all the hype surrounding the arrival of Louis van Gaal, it was perfectly clear that Manchester United again lack the quality to mix it up with the best of them in the Premier League.

The Red Devils have made some decent signings this summer, but it appears they have failed to address the key issues, while numerous injuries to the playing squad are certainly not helping.

The weak back line was the main reason for the 2-1 defeat to Swansea on the opening day of the league campaign, but there were plenty of problems in other areas as well.

United will now have two important players back to the side, but with Ander Herrera missing, the lack of creativity in midfield will be there for everyone to see.

Considering the circumstances, you could definitely do a lot better than backing the Red Devils at 1.80 (4/5) at BetVictor.

Robin van Persie and Antonio Valencia are back in contention, but Ander Herrera, Marouane Fellaini and Jesse Lingard are injured, while new signing Marcos Rojo has yet to be handed his work permit.

Probable starting line-up (3-4-1-2): De Gea – Jones, Smalling, Evans – Valencia, Fletcher, Cleverley, Young – Mata – Rooney, Van Persie.

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