Manchester United V Chelsea Betting: Saturday, 3rd April (Sky Sports 1)

 

Manchester United V Chelsea

 

 

Saturday, 3^rd April – 12:45 GMT

TV Coverage: Sky Sports 1

 

 

 

Manchester United

  

League Position: 1st

Recent Form: WWWWW

 

While the talking point should be about United’s superb run of form at Old Trafford, and how a win over their closest title rival would put them firmly in the driving seat, it is instead all about Wayne Rooney, but for all the wrong reasons. As Man Utd crashed to their first defeat in the knock-out stages of the Champions League on Wednesday night, losing 2-1 in Bayern Munich, Wayne Rooney, with just seconds remaining, was found in a heap in the centre of the Allianz pitch in agony after spraining his ankle. The influential and prolific Untied forward will now miss anywhere between 2-4 weeks of action and it was interesting to see that bookies have altered Manchester United’s odds of winning this hugely anticipated clash accordingly.

  

Manchester United were strong favourites to win this clash before the Rooney injury, somewhere around the 5/4 mark. Now, however, in the absence of a striker which has bagged no less than 34 goals this season, United are as big as 2.63 (7/4) to win Saturday’s enthralling clash with Chelsea. The bookies obviously feel United just aren’t the same team without a Mr. Rooney in their side and it’s hard to disagree with their viewpoint. With Rooney out, it’s difficult to see where the injection of pace will come from, or who will make those darting runs inside the opposing box. Of course, Alex Ferguson does have a striker valued at £30Million at his disposal, but Dimitar Berbatov is no Wayne Rooney. To even compare the two is laughable and to replace a man with bags of enthusiasm and great work ethic with a striker who spends most of his pitch time twiddling his thumbs will undoubtedly lead to doubting punters and pundits around the country.

  

Quite how Manchester United will cope without their fiery Scouser we don’t know, but even so, at odds of around 2.63 (7/4), United do look tremendous value considering they still have a team mixed with quality and experience, while their defence is growing stronger with each game. That’s the pivotal factor for us; United’s defence. They may have been sluggish on Wednesday night in Germany, but back home at Old Trafford they’ve been almost impenetrable, with Fernando Torres the only player to score at The Stadium of Dreams in 720 minutes of action. It goes without saying that Chelsea have some forward stars of their own but if the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra – World Class defenders in their own right – could put in a tidy defensive shift, all it would take was a clinical piece of finishing at the other end to win this fixture, of which any number of players could fit the bill. Dimitar Berbatov is quite capable of stealing the show when he wants to. Despite the Bulgarian’s lazy attitude, he’s a quality forward and give him a whiff at goal and chances are, he will grab it with both hands. Granted he’s yet to score against Chelsea in a United shirt but he’s never been given an opportunity as golden as this and we reckon he might take some of the limelight off Rooney’s injury with a match winning performance on Saturday.

  

If you need me to name other players who can make a difference on Saturday and back up my claims that Manchester United remain a snip at 2.63, look no further than the likes of Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Nani, Valencia and Park… All have tonnes of big game experience and will know exactly what it takes to win a fixture of this magnitude. You could also throw both Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher into the mixer as the pair will be instrumental in United’s chances on Saturday. The pair, should they both start, will need to shield what has been a rock hard United back line from danger and you’ll struggle to find two men better equipped for the job.

  

We understand United are now lacking their best player in Wayne Rooney but don’t write Alex Ferguson and Man Utd off just yet. The Scot is a master in these types of games and at the odds, we won’t be opposing them, even without a player battling for European supremacy with Lionel Messi.

 

 

• Man Utd have lost just one league game at Old Trafford all season (14-1-1). 

•  Aston Villa are the only team to have beaten the reigning English champions at Old Trafford in the league. 

•  An unforgiven United defence has conceded just one league goal in 720 minutes of play at Old Trafford, and it took one of the world’s best strikers to do so, Liverpool’s own Fernando Torres. 

•  Sir Alex Ferguson has guided United to an impressive 14 wins in 16 games at Old Trafford this season, of which 10 of them were without conceding a goal. 

• United’s defensive record of just 9 goals conceded is the best in the league, while the 44 goals they’ve amassed so far at Old Trafford is the second best offensive record.

 

 

 

 

Chelsea

  

League Position: 2nd

Recent Form: LWDWW

  

Chelsea fans must be wandering what they’ve done to deserve such fantastic luck. We are certain none of the Chelsea squad, including their manager Carlo Ancelotti, would have wished an injury on Manchester United’s most prolific goalscorer Wayne Rooney, but for one reason or another the football Gods are shining down on Chelsea this week and they’ll head into this crunch 1^st versus 2^nd clash looking to make Rooney’s absence pay for the hosts at Old Trafford. To do so, though, Chelsea would need to strike up their first win at Old Trafford in nearly five years, while they would have to send the mighty Red Devils to just their second home defeat of the season.

  

We feel it’s common knowledge now, what with Rooney’s injury being heavily publicised, that Chelsea won’t have a better opportunity to end their four game drought at Old Trafford than on Saturday afternoon. In their previous four visits to Old Trafford, Chelsea have drawn one but lost three, while they’ve not even managed to get on the score sheet in their previous two trips to the Stadium of Dreams. You would like to think, what with United missing their biggest goal threat on Saturday, that Chelsea would at least end their baron run in front of goal with Saturday’s visit, but the travelling Chelsea support will hold out hopes for bigger and better, that being all three points. Basically a win that would lift the Blues above United in the league and back into the Premier League driving seat.

 

Chelsea have prepared well for this clash, beating their last two league opponents in a convincing manner. Their last away encounter was a trip down South to Portsmouth. Chelsea smashed the South Coast side 5-0 at Fratton Park, although we mustn’t forget that Portsmouth are all but relegated. However, to prove their 5-0 demolition of Portsmouth wasn’t just a fluke, Chelsea obliterated Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge at the weekend in a 7-1 drubbing of a Villa side who beforehand had serious claims for Champions League football. Chelsea have now all but ended Villa’s hopes of a fourth place finish, and with the Chelsea players in a rampant yet savage mood of late, they’ll now go for the throat of United and try to derail their title bid with a victory at Old Trafford. 

 

The preparation has gone well, they’ve got their rub of the green with Wayne Rooney out, while there scoring plenty of goals. However, something just doesn’t sit right with a Chelsea bet this weekend and I’m not sure what it is. Like we’ve said, they’ve got plenty going for them right now but, for one reason or another, I can just see them falling short at Old Trafford. Chelsea haven’t raised their game in this fixture for quite some time and will they have raised the stakes with some of their recent displays, I’m still not 100% confident there is a team unity within the Chelsea dressing room. Only time will tell whether I’ll be proven right or wrong, although the good news is we only have to wait a couple more days to see.

 

 

• Chelsea have lost five games this season, two less than their rivals, but four of those have come on the road away from Stamford Bridge. 

•  Chelsea have now notched up 12 goals from their last two league games after impressive and resounding victories over Portsmouth (0-5) and Aston Villa (7-1). 

•  After 16 completed away games (8-4-4) Chelsea have only failed to score in an away fixture once (Birmingham City 0-0 Chelsea). 

•  Chelsea have the best away defensive record in the league: Conceding 5. 

•  Chelsea’s tally of 30 away goals is the third best offensive record in the Premier League, behind both Arsenal and Manchester United. 

• Chelsea haven’t won at Old Trafford for nearly five years: W:0 D:1 L: 3.

 

 

 

Last 5 meetings at Old Trafford:

 

2009/2009: Manchester United 3-0 Chelsea

2007/2008: Manchester United 2-0 Chelsea

2006/2007: Manchester United 1-1 Chelsea

2005/2006: Manchester United 1-0 Chelsea

2004/2005: Manchester United 1-3 Chelsea

 

  

 

Match Verdict: Manchester United to WIN – 2.63 Bet365
 

As Chelsea set out to grasp this golden opportunity to end their five year wait for an Old Trafford win, we turn in the other direction to a man with greater Premiership experience, more English league titles than anyone else and the master at big games… Sir Alex Ferguson. The Scots tactical nous will be the difference for us as he aims to make light of the fact that he is without his most prized asset in Wayne Rooney. He did so emphatically at the weekend when smashing Bolton Wanderers 4-0 at The Reebok, and while this opponent is one of far more class and quality, the fact remains that both Ferguson and Manchester United know too well how to defy adversity.

  

We reckon Fergie will opt for five in midfield: Carrick and Fletcher in the anchor roles, Park a little in front of them while the wing positions will be occupied by two of either Ryan Giggs, Nani or Antonio Valencia. Personally, I’d have Ryan Giggs down the left and keep an in form Nani down the right. Whoever gets the nods, both wingers will need to work on their supply into Berbatov as they will need to be pinpoint, while the pair will want to cut inside and cause some trouble of their own. I don’t know about you but even that looks dangerous enough, so why some are saying this is Chelsea’s for the taking even before they’ve properly analysed the two teams is baffling.

  

We could be proved wrong, while we are setting ourselves up for a big fall should Chelsea win at Old Trafford, but we don’t see that being the case and we really do fancy Manchester United back at Old Trafford to put a miserable week behind them and return to winning ways in what would be a win to put their Bayern Munich defeat right to bed… at least for a week or so.

 

Air of caution: Didier Drogba is just two goals behind Wayne Rooney in the scoring charts and will want to make inroads on that two goal deficit before Rooney returns in about a months time.

 

 

Match Odds:

 

Manchester United – 2.63 Bet365

Draw – 3.25 Boylesports

Chelsea – 2.88 SkyBet

 

 

 

SoccerBetting Value Tip: Dimitar Berbatov FGS – 7.50 Bet365