Southampton vs Manchester United Predictions

• Manchester United should be full of confidence after beating Liverpool 2-1.
• United are unbeaten in their last 13 meetings with Southampton across all competitions.
• Saints have scored in all of their games this season, while the visitors are yet to keep a clean sheet.

Improving duo clash at St Mary’s

Manchester United kicked into gear earlier this week with an impressive 2-1 win over Liverpool at Old Trafford and will now try and back that up with another three points at Southampton.

Saints have hit a bit of form themselves and are seeking to extend a three game unbeaten run after back-to-back wins over Leicester and Cambridge to ease the pressure on boss Ralph Hasenhuttl.

Both teams should stick with the same starting line-ups they fielded in the last round of Premier League games, although United new boy Casemiro may make his debut from the bench after joining from Real Madrid.

United can back up Liverpool success

There have been a few false dawns for United of late; last season they embarked on a six-game unbeaten run through February that included a draw at Atletico Madrid and led to renewed hopes of a top four finish but their form then tailed off. There is a danger that the win over Liverpool may have been a one-off, but the mood does seem to have changed around Old Trafford following that success and then the arrival of a much-needed quality midfielder in Casemiro.

It was always going to take some time for Erik ten Hag to mould the team and chances are there will be a few more setbacks along the way, but they should be able to use their momentum to win at St Mary’s in the early kick off on Saturday. Southampton have been in good form but they did fall way short against quality opposition at the start of the season as they went down 4-1 to Spurs.

Saints did manage draws in both of their league games with United last season but the visitors have had the better of the head-to-head meetings in recent years and are unbeaten in their last 13 games against Southampton, including a 9-0 success in February 2021.

Saturday’s game is unlikely to be as one-sided but United should still be able to come away with all three points. However, as Saints have scored in all four of their games this season and the Red Devils are yet to keep a clean sheet I’m also expecting both teams to score, so a United win with both teams to score is the main bet.

Rejuvenated Rashford United’s main threat

Marcus Rashford ended a goal drought stretching back to January in the win over Liverpool and can double his tally for the season at St Mary’s. The forward had been low on confidence but that strike, which proved to be the winner, could kickstart his season. Rashford is also a player that tends to score in bursts – last year he managed just four league goals and they came in runs where he managed two in three league outings and then two in back-to-back games – so he stands out as a candidate for an anytime goal.

A 3-1 win for United is the correct score selection, as Saints conceded twice in a 2-2 draw with Leeds in their only home game so far this term and over their last seven home league fixtures have conceded on average over two goals-per-game.

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