Manchester United vs Leicester City Predictions

• Both teams have scored with over 2.5 goals in four of Leicester’s last five away league matches
• Both teams have scored in Manchester United’s last two at home, including their recent 2-1 win over Brentford 
• Marcus Rashford has scored eight goals in 15 previous PL appearances against Leicester

Patchy and unpredictable United seek Foxes’ follow-up

A week and a half on from their 5-2 Carabao Cup victory over Leicester City, Manchester United will attempt to win their second Premier League game since mid-September when the Foxes arrive at Old Trafford again on Sunday.

United’s form is patchy and unpredictable. They were unfortunate to lose at West Ham in Erik ten Hag’s last match in charge, but failed to produce anything convincing in last weekend’s 1-1 home draw with Chelsea.

Interim boss Ruud van Nistelrooy oversaw a second win in three under his watch on Thursday when the Red Devils overcame PAOK 2-0 thanks to two second-half goals from Amad Diallo. The Ivorian winger may have done enough to earn himself a first Premier League start in over six weeks when Steve Cooper’s side return to the Theatre of Dreams with a few changes anticipated in their line-up.

Open game anticipated again

The Leicester boss will be pondering his options at the back with Jannik Vestergaard hoping to reprise his central defensive partnership with Wout Faes. The duo were the bedrock of the Foxes’ Championship title-winning side last term, but the Dane has started only three league games this term.

Cooper could also break up the midfield combination of Harry Winks and Wilfried Ndidi with Boubakary Soumare pushing for a start after an impressive cameo off the bench in last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Ipswich.  Jordan Ayew, who pinched Leicester’s late leveller at Portman Road, may also be in line to start in the forward line.

The team Cooper selects is likely to look quite different to the one he fielded in the cup 11 days before while there may only be three or four changes to the home side, making their tactics slightly easier to predict. The open nature of that recent Old Trafford meeting was hardly surprising given the way these two teams have failed to shut down matches when on course for good results this season.

Rashford could revel in Leicester’s right-side problems

Leicester conceded two stoppage-time goals at Arsenal after battling back superbly to level at 2-2 and left themselves wide open at home to Nottingham Forest once they had got back on terms.  United conceded the equaliser to Chelsea within minutes of going ahead and West Ham’s eventual winner came shortly after the Red Devils had given themselves a lifeline at the London Stadium.

These two flawed teams appear to play better when they are behind on the scoreboard and those characteristics should lead to an exciting clash with goals at each end on Sunday. Both teams have scored with over 2.5 goals in four of the Foxes’ five Premier League away trips this term while, in the home game before last Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Chelsea, United came back from a goal down to beat Brentford 2-1.

Marcus Rashford, who was rested from the starting XI in midweek, has a great scoring record against Leicester and could be ideally positioned to exploit the Foxes’ recent defensive lapses on the right side of their rearguard.