The Premier League returns at Old Trafford and after the summer Jose Mourinho has had he may be satisfied if Man Utd draw with Leicester.
Recommended bets:
1pt Man Utd and Leicester to draw at 100/30
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Man Utd v Leicester (2000 BST, Sky Sports Premier League/Main Event)
It's hard to know whether the Old Trafford faithful will be relishing or dreading the start of the new season given the downbeat atmosphere that surrounds the club after Jose Mourinho's summer of discontent - a win over Leicester would change all that in a hurry however.
Mourinho has been fuming about all manner of things and his mood and manner has sucked all the hope out of pre-season for many a United fan - some say it's the beginning of the end but it could be him going even deeper into his mind game playbook.
The football United fans were treated to last season was more yawn-inducing than inspiring, and it's hard to see there being too much to shout about, on Friday night at least, given the World Cup and nature of their pre-season.
Nemanja Matic being out injured is a huge blow for the start of the campaign. Sergio Romero, Antonio Valencia, Diogo Dalot, Marcos Rojo all missed their final friendly against Bayern Munich while Eric Bailly and Ander Herrera limped out of that game.
Add to that the likes of Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard and Romelu Lukaku only just returning from their post-World Cup breaks then it's hard to know exactly how United will line-up.
Leicester's England pair of Harry Maguire and Jamie Vardy have also only just returned to training so they too may not play full parts in the game. Both gave the Foxes a huge boost as vardy signed a new deal and Maguire remained at the club - United will be hoping he doesn't play a blinder to remind them of what they've missed out on.
Claude Puel has lost Riyad Mahrez but signed Ricardo Pereira, James Maddison and former United defender Jonny Evans to the squad that finished ninth last season, and they'll feel that there could not be a better time to play at Old Trafford than the season opener.
13/2 is tempting for the Foxes to spring an upset but the draw, at a best of 100/30, is much the safer play in what threatens to be a rather lacklustre stalemate.
Prediction: Man Utd 1-1 Leicester (Sky Bet odds:13/2)
First games of the season can be scrappy with varying fitness levels and tactics still to be ironed out - no more so will that be the case than with United. This one may not be pretty but we should get at least a goal each.
Best Bet: Draw at 100/30
As reasoned above - there's just too much guesswork going into all kinds of areas, especially in terms of fitness levels and with that hint of pre-season about it this game screams out draw.
Scorer: Juan Mata first goalscorer at 11/2
He's got four goals in his last four games against Leicester and, although Alexis Sanchez also makes some appeal, the Spaniard can keep his run going by grabbing the opener at Old Trafford.
Selected RequestABet: Both teams to score 3+ corners each & 20+ booking points each at 9/1
Some reasonable assumptions for a decent return, corners and bookings come with teams and players not being quite up to speed.
Opta facts
- Manchester United are unbeaten in their last seven Premier League games against Leicester City, winning four and drawing three, and have lost just one of the last 18 (W13 D4).
- At Old Trafford, Leicester City have lost on seven of their last eight visits in the league (D1), scoring a total of just three goals in that period.
- Man Utd have won their opening fixture more often than any other side in Premier League history (17).
- The last time Man Utd and Leicester City met on the opening weekend of a Premier League campaign was back in 1998-99, with Man Utd coming back from 0-2 behind to draw 2-2 at Old Trafford.
- This is only the second time in English Football League history that the top-flight season has kicked off on a Friday, and Leicester have been involved both times. The other occasion was last season, when Leicester lost 3-4 at Arsenal.
- Manchester United have only lost one of their 10 Premier League games played on a Friday (W6 D3 L1), though this came in their last such match, vs Brighton in May 2018.
- At home, the Man Utd are unbeaten in 20 top-flight league games played on a Friday (W14 D6). Their last such defeat came back in April 1950 (0-2 vs Birmingham).
- Leicester have never won a Premier League game played on a Friday before, drawing two and losing three.
- Man Utd forward Romelu Lukaku has scored four goals in his last six Premier League games against Leicester, though all of those strikes came while he was at Everton. Leicester were one of just three clubs the Belgian faced twice in the league last season, but failed to register a single goal or assist against (also Arsenal and Man City).
- Man Utd’s Juan Mata has scored four goals in his last four Premier League appearances against Leicester, though only one of these has come at Old Trafford. Only against Norwich (5) has the Spaniard scored more Premier League goals than he has versus Leicester (4).
Posted at 0933 BST on 10/08/18.
