Manchester United head to Turin on Wednesday night in a precarious position. Jose Mourinho needs to get a point at the very least to stave off Valencia from overtaking them in Group H. A Manchester United loss and Valencia win against Young Boys will enable the Spanish team to leapfrog their English rivals.
The good news for Mourinho is Valencia are winless in Group H thus far. Still, Manchester United must do everything in their power to win at the Juventus Stadium and keep pace with the group leaders.
Juventus defeated Manchester United on matchday 3 by a 1-0 scoreline. Although it was a slim win in the end, Manchester United offered very little against the Italians. Paulo Dybala’s 17th minute strike was enough for Juventus as they outshot the Red Devils 14-6. Massimiliano Allegri’s team kept 61 percent of the possession and completed 646 passes to Manchester United’s 413. The dominance in the match may not have been reflected in the scoreline, but it was in all other areas.
Mourinho’s team go into the match having won in the Premier League at the weekend. Manchester United had to come from behind to beat Bournemouth, 1-0, however. Anthony Martial continues to shine for Manchester United as he tallied his fifth league goal at the weekend. Meanwhile, Marcus Rashford added the game winner.
Mourinho was without misfiring striker Romelu Lukaku at the weekend due to injury. The week prior, Lukaku was benched due to poor form and only played 25 minutes against Everton. Manchester United do not have a true No. 9 without Lukaku in the lineup. Even though he isn’t scoring, Mourinho needs to start the Belgian against Juventus to bully the Italians’ defence.
Allegri’s team eased to another victory in Serie A at the weekend. Juventus won 3-1 against Cagliari and remain the only unbeaten team in Serie A. The Bianconeri are facing injury issues going into the match and Allegri will have to juggle his personnel. Giorgio Chiellini and Mario Mandzukic returned to full training, but may not be fit to play a full 90 minutes.
Moise Kean sustained a left thigh injury in training, while Federico Bernardeschi, has both muscle fatigue and an injured ankle. Midfielder Blaise Matuidi, who was important in Juventus’ win at Old Trafford, picked up a bruise to his hip in Saturday’s win over Cagliari. Full-back Joao Cancelo, who shut down the Red Devils’ left side on matchday 3, also has a thigh injury. Winger Douglas Costa was taken off at halftime on Saturday and is still fighting for fitness.
According to leading sportsbooks, Juventus are still favourites despite the injury issues. Even with a few players missing, they will still have Cristiano Ronaldo and Dybala. Juventus will defeat Manchester United once more and achieve passage to the next round.