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Monday 13 July 2020 20:28
Follow all the action live from Old Trafford as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side look to place one leg in next season’s Champions League
Manchester United host Southampton at Old Trafford in the Premier League this evening.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have been in terrific form since the restart, winning five of their six fixtures. Chelsea and Leicester suffered shock defeats last time out and a victory will see United leapfrog both and take a firm grip on a place in next season’s Champions League.
Southampton will provide a stern test, though, with Ralph Hasenhuttl’s squad also in fine form. The Saints have won three of their last five games, including an upset of deposed champions Manchester City. Follow all the action live below:
27 mins: The water break is taken straight after the goal. It’s been a brutal five minutes for Southampton who’ve seen the momentum of the game swing firmly away from them.
Anthony Martial recorded his 50th Premier League goal for Manchester United with that one as well.
20 mins: Rashford plays Martial quickly into the box. He chips a cross into the middle where Fernandes is but Bednarek gets to the ball first and heads it clear.
18 mins: Good play from United. Luke Shaw plays a one-two with Martial on the left hand side to break into some space. He runs the ball to the penalty area and slots it low into the middle of the box. Rashford meets it and turns the ball into the net but he’s offside. The goal doesn’t stand.
Southampton have been really good so far. Their high press has troubled United who are finding it difficult to get the ball into their midfielders.
15 mins: Chelsea and Leicester both lost games they were expected to win over the weekend, Man Utd now trial Southampton at Old Trafford. Can Man Utd respond?
12 mins: What a chance! Ward-Prowse receives a pass back to him and his first touch is poor. Martial nips in to take the ball and he bursts into the box. One-on-one with Alex McCarthy, who comes out to close him down, Martial tries to beat the Saints goalkeeper to his left but McCarthy sticks out a hand and stops the shot.
9 mins: Ryan Bertrand makes a good run into the left side of the box. Ings finds him by knocking a pass past Wan-Bissaka. Bertrand crosses the ball but De Gea plucks it out of the air.
6 mins: Southampton press United quite high and win a throw in on the right wing. Martial wins it back and Romeu gives away a free kick to the home side.
3 mins: Alex McCarthy slips as he sends a ball up the field. The pitch is quite slippery as it’s been raining up in Manchester for most of the day.
Man Utd are seeing most of the ball in these opening minutes.
The teams take a minute’s silence to remember the life of Jack Charlton who passed away on Friday.
I reckon we’re in for a good game. Southampton have come out onto the pitch, followed by Man Utd.
Southampton manager, Ralph Hasenhuttl, has done a great job turning Saints around and securing a midtable finish this year. He told Sky Sports:
“We are in good form and the pressure is always there, you do not want to lose so you keep that pressure yourselves. I did not think about being the best team after lockdown and we have not beaten Manchester United here in my time.
“We know that if we want to get something here we have to have an unbelievable performance and you have to show you can do it.
“We took a lot of points since (October) and the team has completely changed its behaviour and habits. We played like a relegation team and now we are more committed and developed in every part of our game. We have to be, the Premier League reveals your weaknesses.
“You need a little bit of fortune and we need a clinical finisher, Danny Ings is one guy who is able to do this. The rest is earning the luck.”
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer talked to Sky Sports about the race to the top four including what he thought about Chelsea. He said:
“They have not slipped up many times. They have had a fantastic season. We just have to focus on ourselves, we have played really well lately, we just want to keep that run going.”
Solskjaer then added his thoughts on tonight’s opponents, Southampton, saying:
“It is a bigger test than many people would think. The performance they put in against Manchester City was great. Ralph has put a team together, they are one of the fittest teams in the league. It will be a tough game and one we have to earn the right to win.”
Danny Ings is having a stellar season for Southampton. He’s netted 19 times for the Saints in the league including four goals in five games since the lockdown.
Jamie Vardy (23) is currently leading the race for the golden boot. Can Ings narrow the gap tonight?
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer fills us in on his decision to name an unchanged starting XI. Have a watch:
The latest round of Coronavirus tests from the Premier League are in. Between Monday 6 July and Sunday 12 July, 2,071 players and club staff were tested for Covid-19.
Of these, just one person has tested positive.
Now that Chelsea, Leicester and Man Utd know they need to finish in the top four for Champions League football what does the decision to throw out Manchester City’s two-year European ban mean to the wider world of football?
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