Manchester United vs Leicester City: 5 Key Battles to watch out for during the Premier League game
Saturday marks the return of the Premier League after the international break and Manchester United’s trip to Leicester City is the standout fixture of the weekend. Prior to the international break, both these teams experienced disappointing results.
While Manchester United were held to a 1-1 draw at home by Everton, Leicester dropped points away to Crystal Palace. Those results increase the significance of Saturday’s Premier League encounter, especially for Manchester United as they face Liverpool, Spurs and Manchester City in the coming weeks.
Manchester United have experienced a rollercoaster start to their Premier League campaign so far. A huge win over Leeds United on the opening day of the season was followed by Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to Old Trafford and the Portuguese superstar made an instant impact.
Manchester United will be determined to bounce back in the Premier League
However, the euphoria surrounding his return dimmed significantly when Manchester United failed to secure all three points against Everton two weeks back. Meanwhile, Leicester City have not hit the ground running as they languish in the bottom half of the table after the opening seven games of the season.
With so much on the line, here are five key battles to watch out for when Leicester City host Manchester United in the Premier League on Saturday:
#5 Aaron Wan-Bissaka vs Harvey Barnes
Harvey Barnes has not had the best of starts to the Premier League season so far but he remains one of the most exciting young prospects in the country. Barnes will go head-to-head against one of the most defensively sound full-backs in the Premier League on Saturday when he faces Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
The winger, one of Leicester City’s most creative players, is known for his raw pace and direct style of play. He will have to be on top of his game if he is to emerge victorious in his battle against Wan-Bissaka.
Manchester United's Wan-Bissaka, on the other hand, will have to be on his guard so as not to give the youngster space to run in behind the defense. Barnes has developed a good understanding with Jamie Vardy and it will be Wan-Bissaka’s responsibility to ensure that the duo do not manage to successfully link-up with each other. The outcome of the battle between the two Englishmen will go a long way in deciding the result of the game on Saturday in the Premier League.
#4 Luke Shaw vs Ricardo Pereira
Luke Shaw has turned his career around in the last few years and how! The Englishman has been in fine form for both club and country over the last year or so. Manchester United will hope he can keep it going when he comes up against Ricardo Pereira on Saturday in the Premier League.
Shaw and Ricardo Pereira are both equally adept on the attacking front while carrying out their defensive responsibilities and their head-to-head battle promises to be a tantalising prospect.
The fact that Shaw and Pereira are both capable of delivering dangerous freekicks and corners into the box also adds to their attacking threat and brings a creative dimension to their game.
Given how similar both these players are in terms of their playing style, the outcome of the game might be decided on how well Shaw and Pereira outdo each other.
#3 Bruno Fernandes vs Youri Tielemans
Bruno Fernandes has been Manchester United’s creator in chief ever since he made his debut for the Premier League club. On Saturday, Youri Tielemans will be tasked with the responsibility of stopping Fernandes from playing his natural game. Fernandes has been given the license to roam all over the pitch by Ole Gunnar Solskjær and Tielemans will have his task cut-out to keep his counterpart quiet.
The Belgian midfielder will have to go about his duties in a responsible manner and cannot afford to give away freekicks in dangerous positions. Tielemans will be well-aware of the fact that Manchester United have Fernandes and other technicians in their ranks who can make Leicester City pay a heavy price for silly mistakes.
One can expect Tielemans to be preoccupied with marking Fernandes during the Premier League clash on Saturday. But the Leicester City man also possesses an eye for goal as he has scored one and assisted two goals in seven Premier League games so far this season.
United have been on the lookout for reinforcements in midfield for a while now, and among several others, Tielemans has also been linked with a move. If he has a good outing against the Premier League giants on Saturday, it could tempt Manchester United to splurge the cash on him in the future.
#2 Jamie Vardy vs Victor Lindelöf
Manchester United have experienced an exasperating fortnight. After the draw at home to Everton in the Premier League, Raphael Varane picked up an injury during the international break. Harry Maguire, who was also on the treatment table, has returned to training but it remains to be seen if he is fit to start for Manchester United against Leicester.
In the absence of United’s first-choice centre-back pairing, Victor Lindelöf and Eric Bailly could start together against Leicester City.
The duo will have to deal with the threat of Jamie Vardy, who thrives on playing on the shoulder of the last defender and making the most of his pace. Despite being older than both Bailly and Lindelöf, Vardy will fancy his chances, especially against the latter who is not known to be the most mobile across the turf.
Additionally, Vardy has a knack for scoring in big games and comes into this fixture on the back of three goals in his last two Premier League games. Lindelöf cannot afford to play a high line against Vardy as he will most likely exploit any space that he is afforded to run into. How the Manchester United defender handles Vardy’s goal-threat will go a long way in defining the outcome of the Premier League game.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo vs Caglar Soyuncu
While the world is still coming to terms with Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to Manchester United, the Portuguese superstar has taken to Old Trafford like a fish to water.
However, Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjær raised a few eyebrows by starting Ronaldo on the bench last time out and it is highly unlikely that he will do the same thing again. Meanwhile, Caglar Soyuncu may be one of the best centre-backs in the league on his day but he is set to face his toughest test yet when he comes up against Ronaldo.
Ronaldo may not have the pace and flair that he had during his first stint at Manchester United but his awareness, positioning and finishing-ability are second to none.
Soyuncu, who has looked shaky at the back this season, will have to play out of his skin to keep Ronaldo quiet. The Portuguese comes into the game having scored three goals in four Premier League games so far and deservedly won the league's Player of the Month award for September.
While Ronaldo will be looking to add to his Premier League goal tally on Saturday, if Soyuncu manages to keep a clean sheet, it will be a day the Leicester man will never forget.
Understandably, Manchester United will certainly hope their talisman can power them to another Premier League win.
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