MAN UTD MATCHDAY PREVIEW

FULHAM V MANCHESTER UNITED | SUNDAY 13TH DECEMBER 2022 | 4.30PM | CRAVEN COTTAGE | #FULMUN

The opposition

• After beginning the Erik ten Hag era with back-to-back defeats, United rallied to go on a barnstorming run, losing just one of their subsequent 10 Premier League matches.
• The Red Devils did lose their last league outing, though, with Aston Villa claiming a 3-1 win in Unai Emery’s first game in charge. The two sides met again in the Carabao Cup at Old Trafford on Thursday, with the hosts victorious on that occasion, twice coming from behind to triumph 4-2.
• United have gone well in Europe as well under ten Hag, though their five wins from six wasn’t enough to see them top their Europa League group, meaning they will now face Barcelona in the first knockout round.

Fulham team news

Aleksandar Mitrović remains absent after missing our narrow defeat at Manchester City, while Manor Solomon and Neeskens Kebano are also sidelined. One match suspensions are being served by Kenny Tete and Harrison Reed after picking up their fifth bookings of the season at the Etihad.

Man Utd team news

Diogo Dalot misses the match through suspension, meaning United could be light at full-back as Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Axel Tuanzebe and Brandon Williams continue to struggle. Wingers Jadon Sancho and Antony need to be assessed, as does Cristiano Ronaldo who was absent in midweek with an illness. Raphael Varane has been named in France’s World Cup squad, but the centre-back will not feature at Craven Cottage.

Tickets

This match has sold out.

Weather

After a bright day, the sun will have set by kick-off, but it will remain dry with temperatures of around 15 degrees.

Player insight

Victory for Fulham at the weekend will mean we sit one point behind our opponents as we head into the World Cup break.

And whether or not you pay that much attention to the table at this stage, Tom Cairney insists that would be some achievement after 15 matches.

“If that is the case and we do go into the break a point behind Manchester United, then it’s been an immense start to the season and everyone deserves a lot of credit,” he told FFCtv. “We’ve been building up this week for a big, big performance on Sunday, and hopefully we get it.”