After winning 5 games in a row, Manchester United new boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will visit Wembley looking for the sixth win. But it is the toughest test of all in his era at United. He hasn't faced any of the big 6 clubs till now. Spurs being the first one, it will be interesting how he will shape his team against giant Spurs at Wembley. Added to the intensity of the match between two big teams of English football, it will be interesting how the thing works out off the pitch. After Mourinho was sacked by United last month, Solskjaer was appointed as a caretaker till the end of the season. But the position is yet to be permanently filled, Spurs boss Pochettino was one of the top names who are likely to fill this position.
Solskjaer showed the interest to get the permanent position publicly. But the case is different on the other end. Pochettino expressed his desire to be at Spurs for 20 more years. But he also claimed that Spurs should change the order to end the trophy drought. It is hard to translate what he actually meant. But it is going to be head to head battle between 2 possible candidates to prove who is the best in the business. Solskjaer would want to get better of Pochettino tactically and give strong candidacy as the United's managers.
Going to the team news, United is fresh and warm after training in Dubai after the busy festival period. It should have certainly helped United's player recover from the back to back games. But for Spurs, they played the EFL cup semi-final against Chelsea. They hadn't had much time to recover from the busy schedule.
United had injury concern for two of their best players which included Pogba and Sanchez. Pogba picked knock against Newcastle following dangerous tackle by Shelvey. He stayed behind at United when all his teammates went to Dubai. But the good news is that he later flew Dubai to join the team and he is all set to make a return and start against Spurs. Pogba had been instrumental in United's winning run recently. Another concern was Sanchez who felt the hamstring problem while playing against Reading at FA Cup tie but was substituted immediately. He traveled to Dubai with the team and trained. It means he should is also fit to start.
For Tottenham, they don't have big injury concerns. Vertonghen, Dembele, and Lamela are all fit to start. Their star man Son will play the final game before going for International duty till Feb 10. Against Chelsea, all the big name started which include Kane, Eriksen, Alli, and Son. It means United will have the advantage of the week rest against the tired Spurs team. Also, United rested most of the players against Reading in the FA cup tie.
United had been a better team than United for a long time in history but the recent history is different. Last time these 2 teams met at Old Trafford, where United was humiliated by Spurs with a 3-0 defeat back in August. The story is the same in most of the other fixtures after the Fergie era. Spurs are a stronger team but Solskjaer and United will try to get something from Wembley.
Spurs are at third behind Liverpool and City, and they still are present in the title race. They would want to win this one and pressure Liverpool and City. But for United, they must win the big games if they want to get close to the Champions League position. After Arsenal lost today's match, United will have a chance to come in level with the Arsenal. It is hard to say who is going to win this game but the football world and United fans are waiting to see how Solskjaer come up against the big teams after the recent success.
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