Southampton vs Manchester United: Opposition Threats

[caption id="attachment_17386" align="aligncenter" width="850"] Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Manager of Manchester United and Ralph Hasenhuttl, Manager of Southampton (Photo by Peter Powell/Pool via Getty Images)[/caption]rn Southampton welcome the visit of a under-performing Manchester United on Sunday, in the hope of stretching their unbeaten Premier League run to eight games. rnThe Red Devils enter this game sitting 10th in the Premier League, and four points behind Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men - winning only half of their games in the opening eight games.rnrnThough in the same breath, the northern club have only lost one of their last five games which was to another so-called ‘top-six’ club in Arsenal - a Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang penalty the difference.rnrnDespite that, United have shown in their two last victories against West Brom and Everton that they have the individual quality to beat teams despite not playing well - players that the Saints should be wary of to be mentioned.rnrn[nextslide teaser="Bruno%20Fernandes" /]rnrn rnrn[caption id="attachment_17379" align="aligncenter" width="850"] Manchester United's Portuguese midfielder Bruno Fernandes (Photo by OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)[/caption]rn Bruno Fernandes - Midfielder rnIt should be of no surprise that the Portuguese-star is included on the list given his goal involvement for Manchester United so far this campaign at a staggering nine in eight games (six goals and three assists).rnrnFor some deeper context, Fernandes has played a total of 661 minutes in the Premier League, that means he has a goal involvement of one in every 73 minutes. Meaning that he is likely to pop in with some contribution for United if not kept under wraps by Southampton.rnrnGiven the 26-year-old plays in an attacking-midfield spot, James Ward-Prowse and Oriol Romeu will be tasked with the job of trying to nullify the former Sporting Lisbon man, given the latter's tackling ability, Romeu is best suited to the job of keeping Fernandes in check.rnrn Strengths that the Portuguese possesses are thought to be his through balls, key passes, finishing, set-piece taking (penalties for sure), longs shots and defensive contribution.rnrn[nextslide teaser="Marcus%20Rashford" /]rnrn rnrn[caption id="attachment_17381" align="alignnone" width="855"] Marcus Rashford of Manchester United (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)[/caption]rn Marcus Rashford - Attacker rnThe 23-year-old has had quite the 2020, with developing into one of United's key players to campaigning successfully off the pitch to help fund programmes for children's wellbeing - Rashford has quite become the example of using your platform for the greater good and a quote on quote national hero.rnrnSo far this campaign, the Englishman has notched in with a goal involvement of five in eight games in the Premier League (two goals and three assists) - though in the Champions League he has scored five in four games, taking his overall campaign to a goal involvement of 10 in 12 games.rnrnHis most notable game this season would be his hat-trick against Red Bull Leipzig, to which Rashford only featured for 27 minutes having come off the bench towards the dying embers of the game.rnrnThe United academy graduate has featured mostly on the left-hand side of midfield for manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer - meaning that Kyle Walker-Peters will most likely come face-to-face with Rashford for the game on Sunday.rnrn[nextslide teaser="David%20De%20Gea" /]rnrn rnrn[caption id="attachment_17382" align="alignnone" width="856"] David De Gea of Manchester United (Photo by Chloe Knott - Danehouse/Getty Images)[/caption]rn David De Gea - Goalkeeper rnIt was quite difficult picking out a third player for Manchester United given their satisfactory form, though the Spaniard, De Gea is capable of always playing a world-class game when called upon.rnrnLast campaign the 30-year-old made a total of 96 saves in the Premier League, the most for any of the 'top six' clubs besides Arsenal's Bernd Leno at 113. United however conceded the third-least goals last campaign at 36, which should be a testament to how vital the goalkeeper is to them.rnrnThe former Atletico Madrid-man was once considered the best-keeper in the world, and on any given match day he has the potential to deny just about any opportunity that the opposition throw at him - to which strikers such as Che Adams and even a potential return of Danny Ings could face this Sunday.rnrn[story_link_next description="Saints%20targeting%20January%20transfer%20for%20Man%20United%20talent" url="https://saintsmarching.com/2020/11/25/southampton-saints-targeting-january-transfer-man-united-talent/" /]

Saints Marching

Southampton vs Manchester United: Opposition Threats

Southampton welcome the visit of a under-performing Manchester United on Sunday, in the hope of stretching their unbeaten Premier League run to eight games.

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