Man Utd v Sheff Utd free betting tips: Best bets and Premier League preview

Football betting tips: Premier League

1pt 4-6 total match cards at 13/8

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Manchester United v Sheffield United

• 20:15 GMT on BT Sport 1
• Match odds: Home 1/4 | Draw 19/4 | Away 11/1

There is no two ways about it, this is going to be a tough fixture for Sheffield United. Strictly speaking, Manchester United are too short in the betting to warrant significant confidence, a price of 1/4, as Liverpool discovered against Burnley last week, is just too slender, but that does not make the Blades’ task any easier.

Confidence is huge in football, and fewer teams will be more confident currently than Manchester United. The Red Devils lead the way in the Premier League, unbeaten in the league since November, and they arrive here on the back of a thrilling, confidence-enhancing 3-2 victory over Liverpool in the FA Cup, heaping further misery on their bitter rivals.

They have one of, if not the, most in-form player in the league in Bruno Fernandes – who came off the bench to score a late winning free-kick against Liverpool, sending his side into the fifth round of the FA Cup – and United really are starting to look like the side Ole Gunnar Solskjær has been envisioning for the last couple of seasons.

Manchester City have a game in hand on their city rivals, so it is imperative that United do not slip up against the Premier League’s bottom club, but causing Manchester United to slip up has to be high on Sheffield United’s agenda.

Chris Wilder’s side gained their first Premier League win of the season against Newcastle earlier this month, but while they were value for their 1-0 victory, creating plenty of chances, the Magpies did play the entire second half with 10 men following Ryan Fraser’s dismissal.

That win, on the back of an FA Cup victory over Bristol Rovers, was supposed to prove the belated launchpad for Sheffield United’s season, but the Blades were extremely toothless in their 3-1 defeat to Tottenham in their subsequent Premier League game, going down without so much as a whimper.

A 2-1 victory over Plymouth in the FA Cup at the weekend may have given the Blades a much needed confidence boost, but they will have to really dig in if they are to get anything out of this game, showing all the determination, all the combative spirit, and all the nous that served them so well last campaign, which brings us nicely onto our selection, backing a dogged Blades performance that will result in plenty of yellow cards.

Only Fulham and Leicester have seen more yellow cards than Sheffield United this season, while Manchester United sit seventh in the bookings table.

Manchester United have averaged two yellow cards per match when at home this season, a figure that is topped only by Fulham, while Sheffield United’s tally of 21 yellow cards received away from home – an average of 2.33 per game – is the highest in the division.

Seven of Sheffield United’s last eight matches have seen four or more yellow cards, including the reverse of this fixture last month, so the current price of around 11/10 for 40+ booking points makes obvious appeal. A selection that makes even more appeal however, is the 13/8 available with William Hill about 4-6 total match cards. While these two are no strangers to the referee’s notebook, neither side have been involved in a game that has seen more than six yellows this term, so it makes sense to take this bigger price for a more probable outcome.

Score prediction: Manchester United 2-1 Sheffield United (Sky Bet odds: 15/2)

Manchester United v Sheffield United best bet

• 4-6 total match cards at 13/8

Odds correct at 1600 GMT (26/01/21)

Opta facts

• Manchester United have won their last seven home top-flight encounters with Sheffield United, a run that stretches back to August 1975.
• After a six-game winless run at Old Trafford (D3 L3), Manchester United have won four of their last five home league games (D1), keeping three clean sheets in this run. However, 50% of Man Utd’s total 12 home league goals this season have come in one game (6-2 vs Leeds).
• Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford has been directly involved in six goals in his three Premier League appearances against Sheffield United (3 goals, 3 assists), averaging a goal or assist every 43 minutes against the Blades.
• Bruno Fernandes has failed to either score or assist a goal in three consecutive Premier League games for the first time since joining Manchester United last year.
• All seven of Sheffield United striker David McGoldrick’s Premier League goals have come against four of the six ever-present sides in the competition (3 v Chelsea, 2 v Man Utd, 1 v Arsenal, 1 v Tottenham). He’s the highest goalscorer in Premier League history with 100% of his goals to come against sides to have played in every season.

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