Man Utd v Leicester City
Saturday, 15:00
It has already become obvious how to inhibit Man Utd; deploy a deep defensive line to nullify their speed (Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s one-dimensional attacking strategy) and funnel counters through the middle of the park where Scott McTominay is hugely overworked. Brendan Rodgers is a flexible and reactive tactician happy to adapt to opposition weaknesses, which is why James Maddison and Jamie Vardy should provide Leicester with the three points on Saturday.
Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof do not look assured as a centre-back partnership, their mix-up for Jordan Ayew’s goal in the defeat at home to Crystal Palace an alarming sight ahead of Vardy’s visit to Old Trafford. Maddison, along with Youri Tielemans, is superb at shimmying into space in midfield to receive possession on the half-turn, and playing on Paul Pogba’s blind side he can certainly find joy here. Leicester are one of the country’s best counter-attacking sides, and United one of the worst at coping with quick breaks.
At the other end, the compression in Leicester’s midfield should ensure they avoid the frantic backpedalling that keeps giving Daniel James opportunities to cut inside and shoot, plus Wilfried Ndidi is more than capable of handling Pogba. Leicester are simply a better team in every area of the pitch.
Wolves v Chelsea
Saturday, 15:00
The chaos of Wolves’ 3-2 defeat at Everton is partially explained by their exhaustion from Europa League football, but even after a refreshing international break Nuno Esperito Santo’s side won’t be able to avoid another stretched, end-to-end contest this weekend. Chelsea’s extremely expansive formation will entice the hosts to counter in high numbers.
Frank Lampard preached high pressing and a high line, but seemingly has little interest in coaching the transitions from attack to defence; from wide a formation to a compressed one. It’s an irresistible prospect for opponents: Leicester, Norwich, and Sheffield United only tentatively committed men to the counter at first, but by the second half realised the extraordinary shape they were facing and threw bodies forward.
Wolves will surely do the same, not least because Adama Traore will see huge open patches of grass behind Emerson. Their head-to-head ensures goals at Molineaux, as does the prospect of Diogo Jota and Raul Jimenez combining amid a Rudiger-less Chelsea defence.
Tottenham v Crystal Palace
Saturday, 15:00
Tottenham’s 1-0 defeat at home to Newcastle continued a worrying trend; they took more than 80 minutes to score against Brighton, Crystal Palace, and Newcastle in home games towards the end of last season, as well as losing 1-0 to West Ham. Mauricio Pochettino does not appear to have found a solution to Spurs’ difficulty breaking down a deep-lying defence.
They used to rely on top-quality full-backs to stretch the opposition and fire crosses into the box, but Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier have moved on and Danny Rose is a shadow of his former self. These days Spurs look too narrow, their playmakers too slight to operate in tight areas and Harry Kane dropping too deep to get the ball. They lack a fulcrum up front, as well as ingenuity in the final third.
Crystal Palace, then, will expect to build on back-to-back league wins and repeat their Old Trafford performance. Roy Hodgson’s side will hunch in a shamelessly defensive 4-4-2, inviting a laboured Spurs to find creative solutions. This will be a wearying slog of a contest with few goals and, perhaps, another three points for Palace.
Watford v Arsenal
Sunday, 16:30
Live on Sky Sports Premier League
In Quique Sanchez Flores’ sole season in charge, in 2015/16, Watford were known for sturdy defensive football in a narrow 4-4-2 formation, which explains why the board believe he can tweak the current tactical setup at Vicarage Road and improve their leaky back line. However, while Javi Gracia played too narrowly and without wingers, it is highly likely Flores was told at interview to incorporate Danny Welbeck and £30 million Ismaila Sarri.
Consequently on Sunday there will be greater width and therefore increased counter-attacking speed. Watford will happily sit off Arsenal (avoiding falling into the trap of pressing them and leaving space for the front three), which means few goals in this game as Abdoulaye Doucoure and Etienne Capoue snap into tackles. The new-manager bounce suggests an organised and feisty performance from the hosts that can take advantage of Arsenal’s incoherence away from home.
Watford can win if Welbeck and Sarri are given a chance. Their speed from the wide positions will do damage up against weak Arsenal full-backs Sead Kolasinac and Ainsley Maitland-Niles. A sturdier defence, more confident midfield, and more direct attacking structure under Flores should capitalise on Arsenal’s obvious deficiencies.
Source: BetFair Tips
