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Man Utd and Chelsea meet in blockbuster opening clash

Man Utd and Chelsea meet in blockbuster opening clash
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Manchester United face Chelsea at Old Trafford on Sunday in what is undoubtedly the pick of the opening Premier League fixtures.

Following a disappointing sixth-place finish last season, Manchester United have spent big in the summer transfer window.

Harry Maguire has joined for a world record fee while Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Daniel James are also in contention to make their debuts.

Chelsea’s transfer ban has meant that they were unable to sign any new players in the off-season however Mateo Kovacic’s loan deal from Real Madrid was made permanent.

Christian Pulisic is also likely to start on Sunday following the completion of his move from Borussia Dortmund.

Still, the major change at the club is not on the field, but of it.

Club legend Frank Lampard will take charge of his first game as Chelsea manager on Sunday and would love to start with a win against Manchester United.

Lampard has lost just one of his seven Chelsea matches so far following a successful pre-season which saw the club beat Barcelona.

United have also enjoyed an impressive pre-season, winning all six of their games including victories over Inter Milan, Tottenham Hotspur and AC Milan.

However, all of this will be irrelevant when the two teams take to the field on Sunday and the 2019/20 campaign gets underway.

Both matches between the two teams in the Premier League last season were drawn.

An Anthony Martial brace rescued a 2-2 draw for United at Stamford Bridge before a 1-1 tie at Old Trafford in the reverse fixture.

Manchester United must sort their defense out this season if they are to challenge for a place in the top four this time around.

They conceded more goals than five of the teams that finished below them in the 2018/19 campaign.

Chelsea’s attacking players will be licking their lips at the prospect of opening their goal-scoring accounts however the addition of Harry Maguire should help sure-up United’s back-line.

Opening day fixtures are often unpredictable and full of surprises. It’s hard to know what to expect from such a high-profile match so early on in the season.

Chelsea finished six points clear of Manchester United and their superiority is likely to give them an edge on Sunday.

Forebet predicts that both teams will score and that Chelsea will claim a vital early victory over one of their top-four rivals.

Home team
Away team
Probability %
1X2
Pred
Correct score
Avg. goals
Weather conditions
Coef.
Score
Live
coef.
EPL
352936
2
1 - 2
2.71
15°
4.00
2.04 3.35 4.00 -1 1 1
FT
4 - 0(1 - 0)
-
- - -
Premier League
OVERALL TABLE PTS GP W D L +/-
1
Arsenal 77 34 24 5 5 56
2
Manchester City 76 33 23 7 3 48
3
Liverpool 74 34 22 8 4 41
4
Aston Villa 66 34 20 6 8 21
5
Tottenham 60 32 18 6 8 16
6
Manchester United 53 33 16 5 12 1
7
Newcastle United 50 33 15 5 13 15
8
West Ham 48 34 13 9 12 -9
9
Chelsea 47 32 13 8 11 4
10
Bournemouth 45 34 12 9 13 -11
11
Brighton 44 33 11 11 11 -2
12
Wolverhampton 43 34 12 7 15 -8
13
Fulham 42 34 12 6 16 -4
14
Crystal Palace 39 34 10 9 15 -12
15
Brentford 35 34 9 8 17 -7
16
Everton 33 34 11 8 15 -12
17
Nottingham Forest 26 34 7 9 18 -18
18
Luton Town 25 34 6 7 21 -28
19
Burnley 23 34 5 8 21 -32
20
Sheffield United 16 34 3 7 24 -59

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