The Opta supercomputer struggles to separate the teams ahead of Saturday’s late kick-off. Manchester United are given a 39.1% chance of victory to Crystal Palace’s 35.9%.- Oliver Glasner’s Palace beat United 4-0 in the Premier League last season – only eight managers have ever won their first two meetings with the Red Devils in the competition, most recently Roberto De Zerbi with Brighton in September 2023.
- Man Utd captain Bruno Fernandes has had more shots without scoring than any other player in the Premier League this season (13).
- Manchester United have suffered their fair share of chastening defeats in recent years, but May’s 4-0 loss to Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park prompted more soul-searching than most. On Saturday, Erik ten Hag’s men return to the scene of that defeat, desperate to atone with their hosts yet to win in the Premier League this season.
United were blown away on their last trip to Selhurst Park as Jean-Philippe Mateta and Tyrick Mitchell joined Michael Olise, who helped himself to a brace, on the scoresheet.
Oliver Glasner now has a chance to become just the ninth manager in Premier League history to win his first two matches against United in the competition, with Roberto De Zerbi the most recent to do so with Brighton and Hove Albion 12 months ago.
United appeared to be in the midst of yet another crisis when they emerged from the international break with just three points from their first three games of 2024-25, but back-to-back wins have steadied the ship somewhat, the Red Devils winning 3-0 at Southampton last Saturday before crushing third-tier Barnsley 7-0 in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday.
United’s underlying metrics for this season actually tell a somewhat positive story, with their expected goals (xG) figure of 7.9 being the third-highest in the Premier League. However, they have only netted five times, with only Southampton (one goal from 4.6 xG) underperforming their xG by a greater margin this term.
Ten Hag will hope Tuesday’s big win, which featured braces for Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho and Christian Eriksen as well as a penalty from Antony, will breathe more confidence into his misfiring attack.
