The Big Match Tactical View: Wolves v Man Utd

Wolves v Man Utd
Tuesday 19:45, Sky Sports Premier League
Match Odds: Wolves 4.10, Man Utd 2.10, The Draw 3.60

Manchester United laboured to a 2-1 victory over Watford at the weekend and will be up against another of the Premier League's surprise packages this season, a Wolverhampton Wanderers side that caused them serious problems in a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford earlier in the campaign, then beat them in the FA Cup.

Nuno to rotate?

The slight complication here is that Wolves are preparing for their FA Cup semi-final meeting with Watford this coming weekend, and they rested a couple of their big names for the weekend loss to Burnley.

Both right-wing-back Matt Doherty and star centre-forward Raul Jimenez were only on the bench. That presumably means they'll be recalled here, and Nuno Espirito Santo was trying to prevent his internationals becoming overloaded with fixtures ahead of the trip to Wembley. Equally, it means others could be rested here.

After continually using a 3-4-3 earlier in the campaign, Wolves' default system is now very much a 3-5-2. In goal, Rui Patricio will probably continue, although he didn't cover himself in glory at the weekend and John Ruddy, Wolves' cup keeper, is arguably knocking on the door for a run in the Premier League too. At the back, Conor Coady scored an unfortunate own goal at the weekend but will lead the defence as the spare man with Willy Boly and Roman Saiss, in for the suspended Ryan Bennett, either side.

Doherty and Jimenez to return

Doherty will probably return on the right flank, with Jonny on the left. In the middle, Espirito Santo has a nice balance with the tenacity of Ruben Neves, the creativity of Joao Moutinhoand the driving runs of Leo Dondoncker. Again, however, it wouldn't be a surprise to see changes here. Morgan Gibbs-White is one of those hoping for a start, which could make Wolves more 3-4-1-2.

Upfront, Jimenez may return to reprise his fine relationship with Diogo Jota. The Mexican is excellent with his back to goal and enjoys facilitating the running of Jota, who motors into the channels and shoots from unpredictable angles.

Rashford to lead the line again

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was unhappy with United's performance at the weekend but will probably resist making major changes here. Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial both scored against Watford when used upfront together and would be disappointed to find themselves omitted here, although the Frenchman did collect a knock and Romelu Lukaku could come into the side. Meanwhile, Jesse Lingard will probably return from the outset after replacing Juan Mata to good effect on Saturday.

Nemanja Matic and Ander Herrera are both available again and create a well-balanced midfield with Paul Pogba given license to push forward. Although not quite in the form of a month ago, Pogba nevertheless looks energised under Solskjaer and this battle against Neves and Moutinho should be interesting - he was outplayed by the min the reverse fixture and made a mistake in the lead-up to Moutinho's goal.

Defensively, Luke Shaw played a wonderful assist for Rashford's opener at the weekend but here will be primarily concerned with defending against Doherty, Wolves' chief attacking threat. Ashley Young will be on the opposite flank, with Phil Jones and Chris Smalling probably the centre-back partnership in front of David De Gea.

I don't see Manchester United winning this one. Their performances under Solskjaer haven't been quite as good as the results suggest, and the disappointing display against Watford is also a cause for concern. Wolves were hugely disappointing against Burnley, but tend to thrive against big opposition. I'll back the draw at 3.60.

The Betfair Trader's View - Alan Thompson

Manchester United were beaten here 2-1 just two weeks ago as Wolves knocked them out of the FA Cup. The Red Devils are right in the middle of an incredible tussle for a top four finish and know they really can’t afford any more slip ups.

However, this Wolves side have already had a superb campaign and will be a tough nut to crack at home, where they are unbeaten in their last seven outings in all competitions. They have also taken their fair share of points when facing the sides above them, both home and away.

After suffering back-to-back defeats, United got back to winning ways at the weekend as they beat Watford at Old Trafford 2-1 to give Ole Gunnar Solskjaer his first win as permanent manager.

My big concern is that Wolves may already have one eye on the FA Cup semi-final next Sunday, if that’s the case then they will lose this, but despite losing 2-0 to Burnley, that didn’t appear to be the case. They went behind early against a side fighting for their lives and were chasing the game thereafter.

Obviously, the semi-final is huge for the hosts and that makes this a tricky betting event. 4.00 in the match odds is so tempting for the home side, especially after what they achieved against the bigger teams but I just can’t seem to pull the trigger on that bet. Instead, I am looking at backing Both Teams to Score at anything better than 2.00.

RECOMMENDED BETS

Michael: Back the draw @ 3.60

Alan: Back Both teams to Score @ 2.00 or better

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The Big Match Tactical View: Arsenal v Newcastle