Manchester United v Fulham - PREVIEW

Article by e-Manchester United Correspondent Tony Gillies

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As we mourn the 56th anniversary of our fallen babes in the Munich air disaster, we welcome Fulham to Old Trafford, who currently prop up the Premier League table and are in desperate need of points in their fight for survival. We also welcome back Rene Mulesnsteen, an un-sung hero of the Fergie era and a man who in hindsight maybe shouldn’t have been shown the door as soon as he was. Also a close friend of Robin van Persie, who seems to be (if you believe the papers) growing more disgruntled with life at United. A lot has changed in the past 9 months but the message we have always taken from the tragic disaster in Munich is that United will always recover, it’s in our DNA to rise from the ashes and given the season we have had we need to sort this mess out and find the fighting spirit we have to become the best in the land again.

This game is a must win, as are all of our league games from now until May and with Everton and Tottenham playing each other this weekend and with at least one of them dropping points, along with the possibility of Liverpool dropping points against Arsenal, this is our chance to close that gap and mount a challenge. We’ve put ourselves in this position and it’s up to us to shake off the disappointment of the season so far and finish it as strong as we normally do when challenging for the title, we now have to treat 4th spot as if it were the Premiership trophy.

We have a good recent league record against Fulham at Old Trafford, the last time the Cottagers left with 3 points was back in 2003 when they ran out 3-1 winners, since then United have come out on top every time and with a trip to the Emirates on Wednesday; we need that run to continue if we are to have any realistic chance of qualifying for the Champions League come the end of the season.

Team News

Nemanja Vidic returns from suspension, given his announcement on Friday that he will be leaving at the end of the season, expect a warm welcome back for our captain. Also, with Jonny Evans going off injured last week against Stoke I think he’ll go straight back into the back 4. Marouane Fellaini could also return to the match day squad and a game like this could be perfect for him to start and help towards regaining fitness. I think Robin van Persie will be on the bench for this one, with the Arsenal game only 3 days after this one I expect him to be kept fresh.

Last 5 Meetings (All Competitions)

Nov 2013: Fulham 1-3 Man Utd
Feb 2013: Fulham 0-1 Man Utd
Jan 2013: Man Utd 4-1 Fulham
Aug 2012: Man Utd 3-2 Fulham
Mar 2012: Man Utd 1-0 Fulham

Predictions

Starting XI – De Gea, Rafael, Vidic, Smalling, Evra, Fellaini, Carrick, Kagawa, Januzaj, Mata, Rooney

Score – Man Utd 3-0 Fulham

We asked our friends at @e_fulhamnet to give us their prediction and they have gone for an ‘unlikely 2-2 draw’, they also said if they get this right, they’ll be hired as Sky Sports pundits immediately!

Fans Prediction

This week’s fans prediction goes to United fan Neil Joey Hollick, who has gone for a convincing 5-0 win for the Reds. You can follow Neil on Twitter @Neiljoeyhollick

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