Rangnick’s battle against the stars and the next setback
There’s a lot of unrest at Manchester United these days. On the one hand, the English record champions are still not living up to the high sporting expectations. On the other hand, there have been increasing media reports that one or the other star, above all Cristiano Ronaldo, is not one hundred percent satisfied with Ralf Rangnick’s appointment as Solskjaer’s successor. There is stress in the air and at the worst possible time.
In the Premier League, the Red Devils are in danger of slowly losing their connection to the top and also in the FA Cup, a tricky task awaits them on Monday evening at the end of the third round. Steven Gerrard and his Villans will be the guests at Old Trafford. Although the odds are clearly in favour of the home side before the clash between Manchester United and Aston Villa, a surprise seems by no means out of the question.
This assessment is based, among other things, on the fact that United are still dancing on three weddings and the Premier League is naturally the highest priority. A load-controlling rotation therefore seems more likely than with the visitors, who are in a healthy mid-table position in the league and can therefore concentrate on the oldest cup competition without any worries. In the third-round clash between Manchester United and Aston Villa, betting on the visitors to progress therefore promises the most exciting value?
Manchester United – Statistics & current form
With three wins and a draw from the first four Premier League games, Ralf Rangnick’s tenure at Manchester United began very positively. While the stabilised defence, which conceded only two goals in the four matches mentioned, was still being cheered at the beginning, the too wait-and-see, unimaginative and unattractive offensive play is now already being criticised. The German coach has not yet found the right balance between a good defence and a dangerous attack.
This was also evident in the unnecessary 1-0 defeat against Wolverhampton a week ago, when Cristiano Ronaldo and Co. couldn’t get anything going forward and were forced to accept a lucky punch from Wolves shortly before the end.
United fail to live up to high expectations again?
After this poor performance, statements were made public for the first time which primarily indicate dissatisfaction with the new coach. First and foremost, veteran Ronaldo seems to have problems with the “professor”, so that there is already speculation about whether the multiple Portuguese world footballer will leave the club in the summer if Rangnick continues in a leading position.
The bottom line, however, is that these discussions reveal the general restlessness and emerging hecticness that makes it immensely difficult for the team to get positive performances on the pitch. The increasing pressure to be successful and at the same time to impress the numerous fans could lead to problems again on Monday evening. In our eyes, a prediction on the home win between Manchester United and Aston Villa is therefore not our preferred option.
As a further argument, it can be added that Rangnick might make one or the other change in his starting eleven in view of the league match taking place next weekend. For example, it does not seem out of the question that CR7 will first take a seat on the bench so that he can be at 100% in the much more important league action. Potential alternatives for the offensive would be Lingard, Mata or Greenwood. Also encouraging is the return of Victor Lindelöf, who could replace the struggling Maguire in the centre of defence after overcoming illness.
Predicted Manchester United line-up:
Henderson; Dalot, Lindelof, Jones, Shaw; Fred, McTominay; Fernandes, Sancho; Ronaldo (Cavani), Rashford
Last matches played by Manchester United:
FA Cup
01/10 2022 – Manchester United 1 – 0 Aston Villa
Premier League
01/03 2022 – Manchester United 0 – 1 Wolverhampton
12/30 2021 – Manchester United 3 – 1 Burnley
12/27 2021 – Newcastle United 1 – 1 Manchester United
12/11 2021 – Norwich 0 – 1 Manchester United
Aston Villa – Statistics & current form
The initial euphoria following the signing of Steven Gerrard has noticeably subsided of late. Like his counterpart, Ralf Rangnick, the Liverpool legend has won three of his first four Premier League games in the Villans’ employ. However, only one further win followed from the four most recent matches in the English top flight. In the previous week, they even suffered a 2-1 defeat at promoted Brentford.
In terms of the table, the club from Birmingham is now in a dismal mid-table position. They are eleven points clear of the relegation zone and just as far behind the European Cup places. With Villa also narrowly beaten on penalties by Chelsea in round three of the League Cup, Gerrard can now turn his full focus to the FA Cup.
Will Gerrard’s side surprise again against the big boys?
We are convinced that the ex-professional, who won the prestigious cup twice during his playing career, will field his strongest eleven and therefore see Manchester United and Aston Villa as the far more interesting value in the odds for a surprise coup.
In order to reach the fourth round, however, the claret and blue will have to break a spell, as in the past five seasons Aston Villa have always failed in the third round – usually even against lower-ranked teams.
The respectable results that the Villans have achieved against the top clubs in the Premier League also prove that more is possible this season and especially on Monday evening at the Theatre of Dreams. Leicester City and Manchester United (in the first leg) were defeated. Against Liverpool and Manchester City, however, they only suffered narrow defeats, although more could have been achieved in these games. So why shouldn’t the supposed underdogs also pose problems for a weakening giant in the FA Cup?
Predicted Aston Villa line-up:
Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Mings, Targett; Ramsey, Luiz, McGinn; Buendia, Watkins, Ings
Last matches played by Aston Villa:
FA Cup
01/10 2022 – Manchester United 1 – 0 Aston Villa
Premier League
01/02 2022 – Brentford 2 – 1 Aston Villa
12/26 2021 – Aston Villa 1 – 3 Chelsea London
12/14 2021 – Norwich 0 – 2 Aston Villa
12/11 2021 – Liverpool FC 1 – 0 Aston Villa
Manchester United – Aston Villa Direct comparison / H2H balance
Two times in a row, the fixture list of both teams now sees the direct duel. On Monday evening, it is a matter of advancing to the fourth FA Cup round, before the return match in the Premier League is on the agenda next Saturday. Aston Villa actually won the first-round match of 2021/22 1-0 at Old Trafford. It was also the underdog’s first win over United since the 2009/10 season. In the FA Cup, the Red and Blue’s record reads even more disastrous with ten defeats from twelve games.
Manchester United – Aston Villa Tip
There is only one match left in the third round of the FA Cup. At the same time, however, it is one of the most interesting of all. Manchester United in particular have a lot at stake on Monday night. Can they take a first step towards calm at the club with a commanding progress, or will the critical voices explode after a potential second consecutive must-win match defeat?
If we believe the betting odds between Manchester United and Aston Villa, then the first scenario is more likely. The Red Devils are relatively clearly favoured and this despite the fact that the record champions lost at home to Wolves last time out. United also lost 1-0 to the Villans at Old Trafford in the first leg of their Premier League campaign.
In addition, it should not be neglected that for United the league is much more important than the FA Cup. Aston Villa, on the other hand, are in mid-table with no prospects of going up or danger of going down, so they will definitely be looking to make a long run in the FA Cup. With this starting position also likely to be reflected in the personnel, we think a coup for the underdogs is far from unrealistic.
Four out of a possible ten bets are justifiable. Those looking for a different bet, however, should perhaps focus on both teams scoring and thus showing a different face than recently in domestic league action.
