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Manchester United and Southampton will battle it out in the Premier League tonight, and Michael Owen believes the Red Devils will walk away from the clash with a victory, albeit a narrow one.
Manchester United have seemingly endured a slight slump following their 3-2 win against Liverpool in the FA Cup last month. Since then, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men have played two Premier League matches - against 20th-placed Sheffield United and then Arsenal. From the 6 points on offer, the Manchester-based club could only grab 1 after losing to the former and drawing against the latter.
As things stand, Manchester United still occupy second place on the Premier League table with 41 points from 21 matches - 3 points away from league leaders Manchester City (who have a game in hand).
Meanwhile, Southampton are currently 11th on the table, and a win tonight will certainly help them maintain their bid for a top-half finish come the end of the season. Notably, the Saints are approaching this match on the back of three consecutive league defeats and will hope to turn things around.
Michael Owen shared his prediction ahead of the match via his blog on BetVictor and wrote:
“Two weeks is a long time in football, just ask Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. One point from their last six [on offer] is not what the United manager would have targeted following his sides excellent FA Cup win against Liverpool," he wrote.
“Visitors, Southampton, arrive here after a couple of underwhelming results of their own. Back-to-back defeats in the league mean the Saints have lost a bit of ground in the race for Europe.
“Although he’s had them playing some excellent stuff this season, Ralph Hasenhuttl hasn’t got the biggest of squads and his players have certainly more miles on the clock than many."
Michael Owen believes that Manchester United's depth will give them the edge over Southampton tonight. He expects the Red Devils to walk away with all three points.
“With that in mind, I think United’s strength in depth should be enough to see them secure the points.”
Manchester United will hope to return to winning ways
With just 1 point coming from their last two Premier League matches, forcing them to concede first place to rivals Manchester City, Manchester United will hope to return to winning ways while they are still in contention for the title. Should they drop points tonight, it will certainly become difficult to catch up with their local rivals.
