Prediction & odds for the game: Chelsea (23/20) v Manchester United (12/5) – ST is backing the home win
When: Sunday, 28th February @ 4.30pm K.O
Where: Stamford Bridge
Chelsea and Manchester United will renew their rivalry this weekend as the race to finish in the Premier League’s top four heats up.
Chelsea
So far, so good for Thomas Tuchel since he replaced Frank Lampard as manager at Stamford Bridge. It’s probably still got a ways to go before he can be viewed as the future of this club but with such a short contract anyway, he may only be planning on a short stay. Whatever the case may be the team looks to be in good hands under his guidance, and they’ll be hoping that trend can continue in a huge game against Ole’s men this weekend.
Holding onto a 1-1 draw against Southampton has been the only real negative in the month of February for Chelsea. They’ve beaten Tottenham, Sheffield United and Newcastle in the Premier League, and they’ve also beaten Atletico Madrid and Barnsley in the UEFA Champions League and FA Cup.
Manchester United
The title challenge seems to be fading for Manchester United, but in truth, they weren’t expected to be serious challengers anyway. The Red Devils are making steady progress but there are still holes in their game that they’ll need to fix if they want to be contenders for many years to come. They’ll come into this game with a conservative approach knowing what Chelsea have been able to produce lately, but going for the throat may be a better strategy in this instance.
Dropping points to West Brom and Everton wasn’t ideal, but United have been fairly consistent outside of those two indiscretions. They beat West Ham in the FA Cup, beat Newcastle in the league and cruised to victory against Real Sociedad over two legs in the UEFA Europa League.
Conclusion
These two haven’t exactly been producing classics when they’ve played one another in recent years and we don’t think they’re going to start now. This is going to be another Tuchel masterclass as the Blues keep United at bay whilst simultaneously doing what they need to do in order to secure the win. So in short, this is going to be a pretty unattractive game of football, but Chelsea fans are going to be left feeling pleased regardless.
Our official scoreline prediction is going to be 1-0 Chelsea, meaning we stick to the under 2.5 goals bracket. Even though we’re predicting a dull type of encounter, we still recommend watching in case there are any surprises that pop up – which isn’t hard to picture given the quality of the players on the pitch.
Verdict: Back the home win at odds of 23/20 and the under 2.5 goals scored at odds of 4/5 (All odds are taken from bet365).
[geosnippet id=3620]If you want to bet on Chelsea vs Manchester United then head on over to the betting page. Alternatively, you can check out some of the other available fixtures on the soccer predictions page as this season’s Premier League drama continues.