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Man United v Leicester
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Kick Off: Friday 7th February at 20:00
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Competition: FA Cup
Ruud Van Nistelrooy returns to the Old Trafford dugout where he was monetarily in charge of Manchester United following the sacking of Erik Ten Hag. He brings his Leicester side, which are really struggling in the Premier League at the moment, underlined by their 4-0 defeat to Everton last time out. The cup will be a welcome break from the unrelenting pressure of a Premier League relegation battle which could help his side take something from this game.
The FA Cup is just as important for Manchester United. Ruben Amorim became the quickest Manchester United manager in history to lose 5 games at Old Trafford, an unwanted record that was dealt by a 2-0 loss to Crystal Palace last time out. With Manchester United sitting 13th in the Premier League, the FA Cup and Europa League are the only chances they’ll have of lifting silverware this season.
⭐ Man United v Leicester Best Bet
Bruno Fernandes has been one of the few standout players for Manchester United this season, he’s registered 11 goal contributions across his 23 Premier League appearances (5 goals, 6 assists) – topping the United ranks for assists and second in goals only behind Amad Diallo.
What really stands out with Fernandes is how effective he was in Manchester United’s 2 previous meetings with Leicester this season. He scored twice and created 4 chances in United’s 5-2 win over Leicester in the EFL Cup and also found the back of the net and provided an assist in United’s 3-0 win over Leicester in the Premier League. There aren’t many sides that Manchester United have consistently been able to create chances against but Leicester are really poor defensively – they’ve conceded 2+ goals in 9 of their last 10 games across all competitions and have conceded 32 goals on the road this campaign – the worst defensive away record of any side in the Premier League.
Bruno Fernandes is on penalties and free kicks for Manchester United as well as corners which offer another route to a goal contribution for the 30-year-old. His underlying numbers are pretty solid, especially when it comes to creating chances – he’s averaging 2.28 chances created per 90 across his 23 Premier League appearances this season.
👕 Man United v Leicester Predicted XI
🔍 Man United v Leicester Players to Watch
🔵 Jamie Vardy
Even at 38 years old, Jamie Vardy is a threat to Premier League backlines. He doesn’t quite have the pace that he used to have which saw him torment defences with his runs in behind but his finishing is just as clinical as it was in his prime. He’s scored 7 goals across his 22 Premier League appearances this campaign which is a more than respectable record when considering his age and the situation Leicester currently find themselves in at the bottom of the table.
He’s averaging 0.81 shots on target per 90 across these appearances, he didn’t feature in either of Leicester’s meetings with Manchester United this season due to injury but has a solid record of scoring against the traditional big 6 sides, recently scoring away at Tottenham.
🔴 Kobbie Mainoo
Ruben Amorim is still experimenting with his Manchester United side and one of the most intriguing selections he’s gone with so far is to play Kobbie Mainoo further up the pitch, either as one of the supporting 10s behind the striker or in the false 9 role himself. The latter was where he was deployed in Manchester United’s 2-0 defeat to Crystal Palace in a damning indictment of Manchester United’s striking options but it wasn’t that effective against the back 3 of Palace.
He may try Mainoo again in one of the roles just behind the striker where he was quite effective in United’s 2-0 win in the Europa League over FCSB in which he had 3 shots and provided a goal as well as an assist showing he can be effective in these roles against certain opposition. Keep an eye on Mainoo’s shots, shots on target and goal contributions in the coming weeks if Amorim persists with this role for the 19-year-old. Mainoo is averaging 0.70 shots per 90 across his 18 Premier League appearances this campaign.
🔵 Boubakary Soumare
Soumare has committed 19 fouls across his 17 Premier League appearances this season, 13 of these have been starts taking his average to 1.43 fouls committed per 90. He committed 2 fouls in Leicester’s 5-2 defeat against Manchester United in the EFL Cup, contesting 7 duels during the game. He’ll have a tough task in attempting to navigate Manchester United’s midfield and will be up against Kobbie Mainoo who is averaging 1.33 fouls won across his 18 Premier League appearances this season.
📂 Man United v Leicester Cheat Sheet
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💻 Man United v Leicester Form and Tactics
Manchester United’s system under Ruben Amorim has come under intense scrutiny but the former Sporting manager has repeated his commitment to his style of play which should see United persist with his 3-4-3 system with some unique profiles. In an ideal world, Amorim would stack his side with attacking talent – even in the wingback areas, at Sporting he played with wingers in these positions which was very effective in overloading sides in the wide areas whilst keeping the defensive line secure. At present, United don’t have the profiles to play in this way which is why the system looks a bit awkward.
January signing Patrick Dorgu has the potential to revolutionise Manchester United’s play down the left-hand side if he can hit the ground running, which has been unbalanced since the injury to Luke Shaw. Manchester United’s back 3 are quite reliable and aggressive in pushing into midfield areas to win the ball back but a season-ending injury to Lisandro Martinez casts doubt over the security of the backline again as Martinez was one of the players who looked most comfortable in Amorim’s system as a left centre back. There is also concern in midfield, Manchester United can lack numbers in these areas which leaves them prone to transition. Leicester will have also noted United’s frailties from set-piece situations, something which we saw in Crystal Palace’s opener at Old Trafford last time out.
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Ruud Van Nistelrooy has some really intriguing ideas but has been too bold with his approach so far as Leicester manager, the Foxes are far too open at the back evidenced by the fact they’ve conceded 2+ goals in 9 of their last 10 games in all competitions. They played with a comically high line against Everton and were quickly punished with David Moyes’ side running out 4-0 winners in the end. The Leicester City boss will have to adapt quickly if he wants to see results improve and could prioritise the league with the number of safe spots available drying up with Everton’s recent resurgence.
Leicester line up in a 4-2-3-1 shape, whilst their defence is a real weak point – they do have players at the other end of the pitch that can make the difference in veteran striker Jamie Vardy and Bilal El Khannouss who has found some form in recent weeks. Leicester have conceded 8 goals across their 2 meetings with Manchester United this season, this will worry Van Nistelrooy as United have really struggled to create and take chances this season implying that Leicester have made it too easy for Ruben Amorim’s side in recent encounters.
🏁 Man United v Leicester Ref Watch
- Referee: Michael Salisbury
- There have only been 2 yellow cards shown across the 2 previous meetings between these sides this season (both for Leicester).
- Leicester have only committed 10 fouls across these games (5 in each fixture).
| Average Cards (Y / R) | 3.46 / 0.15 |
| Fouls Given | 23.08 |
| Penalties | 0.08 |
📺 How to Watch Man United v Leicester in the FA Cup
📅 When is Man United v Leicester? / Friday, 7 February 2025, 20:00
🏟 Where is Man United v Leicester? / Old Trafford (Manchester)
📺 What TV Channel is Man United v Leicester on? / ITV1
🟨 …And who is the referee for Man United v Leicester / Michael Salisbury 🏴
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