Manchester United’s Premier League title credentials will be put to the test on Sunday as Jose Mourinho returns to his old stomping ground and his side face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
The Red Devils have looked much improved from last season and a 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur last weekend will have the visitors going into the game with belief.
A victory on enemy soil for United here has the potential to create distance between the top two and the rest of the Premier League, which Mourinho would relish.
The Old Trafford outfit were not at their blistering best in midweek but still recorded a 2-0 win over Benfica in the Champions League.
As such, while United have not been playing vintage football over the last month, the results have been favourable in a good sign for the Red Devils support.
Looking at the betting odds for the game, Mourinho’s men are 2/1 to taste victory for those having a punt at www.casinosinuk.co.uk/live-casino.
Chelsea on the other hand look rattled and their squad stretched in the last few weeks, with a 3-0 midweek thumping at the hands of Roma exposing the flaws in the Blues’ backline.
The champions are under pressure to emulate last season’s lofty heights, which included a 4-0 triumph over United in this fixture, but look jaded after summer transfer business.
Mourinho will not be the only United man returning to the Bridge, with former Chelsea enforcer Nemanja Matic facing his old employers for the first time.
The Serbian’s addition has been nothing short of a masterstroke by the Old Trafford hierarchy, with the combative midfielder dominating the middle of the park and adding much-needed steel and authority to the Red Devils side.
Odds on Matic to score against Chelsea comes in at enticing odds of 11/1.
Mourinho made changes to his starting XI for the clash with Benfica, possibly with the game against Chelsea in mind, with a host of stars surely set to return on Sunday.
Ander Herrera, Ashley Young, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Marcus Rashford will be in the running to get the nod to play, but the United manager may well look to play if relatively safe against his former charges.
The fact that Untied have not been conceding many goals this season has been a real improvement and a clean sheet at the Bridge would be the ideal building block for the visitors.
Meanwhile, at the other end of the pitch, Romelu Lukaku’s blistering start to his United career has subsided of late and the powerhouse striker needs a goal to rebuild his seemingly shaky confidence.
Given that he was once a Blue but was not given a chance to show what he was capable of, a goal or two on Sunday looks like the ideal starting place – he is at 4/1 to net the first goal.
