Chelsea vs Man Utd predicted XIs: Confirmed team news and probable lineups
Thursday’s late Premier League kick-off will see Chelsea welcome Manchester United to Stamford Bridge, with both sides looking to save their season.
Chelsea have put together a five-match unbeaten streak, albeit an unconvincing one. The run began with a narrow 3-2 FA Cup win over Championship side Leeds and their most recent outing saw them draw 2-2 at home with relegation-threatened Burnley, who were reduced to 10 men for the majority of the game.
Manchester United amazingly avoided defeat at Brentford on Saturday, despite being dominated by the Bees, and their form in 2024 has been anything but convincing. No Premier League side has faced more shots than the Red Devils (197) this calendar year, and Erik ten Hag will need to sort out his team’s defensive issues sooner rather than later.
Bleak reading for Chelsea
Chelsea are a difficult team to predict. One week they are beating Newcastle and the next they are being held to a draw by the 10 men of relegation-threatened Burnley.
Their injury crisis is only getting worse and there is a real lack of cohesion in the squad, which could lead to an opening for Manchester United — who themselves have been inconsistent this term — at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea have already lost to Nottingham Forest, Wolves and Brentford at home this season and they could be undone by the Red Devils, who can be very dangerous on their day.
United have shown some resilience on their travels of late, notching a late goal to nick all three points at Wolves while also beating Aston Villa at their fortress Villa Park, and history suggests they may be set for some west London joy.
The Red Devils are unbeaten in their last 12 Premier League matches against Chelsea, winning both of the last two meetings, suggesting they may have enough to add to the Blues’ woes on Thursday.
However, five of the last seven meetings have finished level, while Chelsea have drawn three of their last four Premier League games.
Chelsea vs Man Utd team news
It’s a battle of the wounded at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea have had some good news ahead of this game, but they are still operating with a threadbare squad — bizarre given the money they have spent. Malo Gusto, Trevoh Chalobah and Robert Sanchez are all available for selection, but Ben Chilwell will miss out through injury. Levi Colwill, Reece James and Christopher Nkunku also remain out injured, with Pochettino insisting the latter has not suffered a setback, merely that his recovery has taken longer than expected.
Man Utd suffered more bad news in midweek. After making his return from injury at the weekend, Lisandro Martinez has picked up another problem in training, ruling him out for a month. Victor Lindelof has also been ruled out for the same period, but Raphael Varane is expected to be available. Amad Diallo is also back from suspension, but it would be a surprise to see him start.
Chelsea vs Man Utd predicted line-ups
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Petrovic; Gusto, Disasi, Badiashile, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Palmer, Gallagher, Sterling; Jackson.
Man Utd (4-2-3-1): Onana; Dalot, Evans, Maguire, Wan-Bissaka; Casemiro, Mainoo; Garnacho, Fernandes, Rashford; Hojlund.
