Preview: Van Nistelrooy to sign off with a win against Leicester? Amad to start after shining against PAOK?

Manchester United -v- Leicester City

Premier League

Old Trafford, Manchester

Sunday 10 November 2024, KO 14:00 GMT

Manchester United return to Premier League action on Sunday as they welcome Leicester City to the Theatre of Dreams once again under the short reign of Ruud van Nistelrooy as he manages his final match at Old Trafford against the club he started it against after Erik ten Hag was sacked.

United beat PAOK 2-0 in the UEFA Europa League at Old Trafford on Thursday evening with Amad Diallo scoring both goals, putting his name very firmly in the mind of incoming manager Ruben Amorim, who starts work with this squad on Monday during the last international break of 2024.

United will be seeking to beat Leicester in a bid to improve their position in the Premier League this season. At the time of writing, United were sat in 13th place in the league with Leicester sat in 15th place – just two points between the two sides.

United – Form, Goals Scored & Assists

PAOK 2-0 W, Chelsea 1-1 D, Leicester 5-2 W, West Ham 2-1 L, Fenerbahçe 1-1 D, Brentford 2-1 W

Goals: 6 – Alejandro Garnacho, 4 – Christian Eriksen, Marcus Rashford, 3 – Amad, Casemiro, Bruno Fernandes, 2 – Rasmus Hojlund, 1 – Antony, Matthijs de Ligt, Harry Maguire, Joshua Zirkzee

Assists: 6 – Bruno Fernandes, 4 – Alejandro Garnacho, 3 – Christian Eriksen, Marcus Rashford, 2 – Diogo Dalot, Joshua Zirkzee, 1 – Amad, Noussair Mazraoui

Leicester – Form, Goals Scored & Assists

Ipswich 1-1 D, United 5-2 L, Forest 3-1 L, Southampton 3-2 W, Bournemouth 1-0 W, Arsenal 4-2 L

Goals: 4 – Jamie Vardy, 3 – Jordan Ayew, Facundo Buonanotte, 2 – James Justin, Stephy Mavididi, 1 – Conor Coady, Bilal El Khannouss, Wout Faes, Stephy Mavididi, Wilfred Ndidi, Harry Winks

Assists: 4 – Wilfred Ndidi, 3 – Harry Winks, 2 – Facundo Buonanotte, Fatawu Issahaku, 1 – Jordan Ayew, Hamza Choudhury, James Justin, Jamie Vardy

Previous Meetings & Connections

United and Leicester have met 34 times in the Premier League. United have won 21 times, drawn nine times and lost four times. United scored 70 goals against Leicester, winning four penalties, scoring three. Leicester scored 31 goals against United, winning two penalties, scoring both.

United did not play Leicester last season as they were in the Championship. But in the 2022/23 season United beat Leicester 3-0 at Old Trafford in the Premier League, also beating them 1-0 at the King Power Stadium. Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho scored the goals for United.

John Curtis, Mark Robins, Dion Dublin, Danny Drinkwater, Matty James, Ron-Robert Zieler, Robbie Savage, Keith Gillespie, Ritchie De Laet, Tom Cleverley, Jonny Evans, Tom Lawrence, Michael Keane, Jesse Lingard, Nick Powell, Danny Simpson and Harry Maguire have played for both clubs.

Team News

United: United are starting to see the end of their injury crisis. Christian Eriksen, Antony and Mason Mount all returned to the bench against PAOK at Old Trafford on Thursday evening, which alleviates United’s injury problems with five more players on the sidelines through injury.

Ruled Out: Kobbie Mainoo (thigh), Leny Yoro (ankle/foot), Harry Maguire (calf/shin/heel), Luke Shaw (calf/shin/heel) and Tyrell Malacia (knee)

Suspended: None

Close to Returning: None

Leicester: Leicester could have just three players missing from the squad to face United on Sunday afternoon. It is not a big deal for the club but it is a match that Leicester will worry about because United are on their new manager bounce and seem to be operating much better as a team.

Ruled Out: Jakub Stolarczyk (ankle/foot) and Patson Daka (ankle/foot)

Suspended: None

Close to Returning: Hamza Choudhury (shoulder)

Predicted United Starting XI – 4-2-3-1

Onana;

Mazraoui, De Ligt, Martinez, Dalot;

Casemiro, Ugarte;

Amad, Fernandes, Garnacho;

Hojlund

Predicted Leicester Starting XI – 4-2-3-1

Hermansen;

Pereira, Faes, Vestergaard, Kristiansen;

Ndidi, Winks;

Fatawu, Buonanotte, Mavididi;

Vardy

Match Prediction

United have done well over the last three matches under Ruud van Nistelrooy and this will be his final match as the interim manager of the club. He started his spell against Leicester in the Carabao Cup a and oversaw a 5-2 victory and he will want to see a repeat of that with fewer goals conceded.

United will start their new era with Ruben Amorim as the manager from Monday, which will be interesting having seen the Portuguese manager guide Sporting to a 4-1 victory over Manchester City earlier in the week. But first the first thing for United will be to end this period on a high.

Leicester sit just two points behind United in the league in 15th place with United in 13th. United will need to get wins under their belts to better their league position, which is unlikely to see them break into the top four. Scoring goals galore is the best way to win. United need to unlock that now.

Manchester United 4-0 Leicester City

Written by Paul