Manchester United will be looking to pick up their first points in this season's Champions League when they welcome Wolfsburg to Old Trafford on Wednesday evening.
The Red Devils were beaten by PSV Eindhoven in their opening group match, while a goal from Julian Draxler saw the German side edge to a narrow win over CSKA Moscow.
Manchester United
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United did not get off to the best of starts on their return to the group stage of the Champions League two weeks ago, as they slipped to a 2-1 defeat against Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven.
Former PSV winger Memphis Depay had given the Reds the lead against the club he left in the summer, before Hector Moreno quickly pulled a goal back. Luciano Narsingh then grabbed a second for the hosts after the break to ensure a miserable night for Louis Van Gaal's side.
Although the result was a blow for United, the match was overshadowed by a horrific injury to Luke Shaw, who broke his leg in a challenge with Moreno that could keep him out for the rest of the season.
It was not the club's first match in Europe this season, as they comfortably saw off Club Brugge 7-1 on aggregate in the play-off round.
Despite the setback in Eindhoven, United have enjoyed an impressive start to their Premier League campaign and Saturday's 3-0 victory over Sunderland saw them move to the top of the table for the first time since Sir Alex Ferguson left the club.
Their league form has seen many people tip them as genuine title contenders this season, but with a visit to Arsenal at the weekend and a derby clash with Manchester City to come next month, their credentials will be given a much sterner test.
Recent form: LWLWWW
Wolfsburg
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On the same night that United lost in the Netherlands, Wolfsburg were making their return to the Champions League after a six-year absence with a clash against CSKA Moscow.
They marked the occasion by grinding out a 1-0 win at the Volkswagen Arena, as a goal late in the first half from summer signing Draxler saw them claim all three points.
The German club were also drawn against United and CSKA on their last appearance in the group stage, and despite beating the Russian outfit in their opening match during that campaign, they finished below the two clubs and had to settle for a spot in the Europa League.
Dieter Hecking will hope that his side can produce some of the form that saw them finish second in the Bundesliga last season, as they have endured a mixed opening to the current campaign and are already nine points behind leaders Bayern Munich in fourth place.
It did not help that last season's star player Kevin De Bruyne, who set up a record 21 league goals, was sold to Manchester City, while they also lost Ivan Perisic to Inter Milan.
They are also facing a great deal of uncertainty due to the current scandal involving club owners Volkswagen. The car manufacturer has admitted to cheating emissions tests in the US and could be fined up £11.8bn, meaning that Wolfsburg may suffer a financial blow.
Recent form: WDWWLD
Team News
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Van Gaal has confirmed that Michael Carrick will not play on Wednesday evening, while Shaw is set for at least six months on the sidelines after breaking his leg against PSV Eindhoven.
Marcos Rojo, Ander Herrera and Antonio Valencia all sat out training with minor injury problems on Tuesday and are likely to miss the game.
However, Anthony Martial should keep his place up front after his impressive start to life at the club, with Wayne Rooney, Juan Mata and Depay joining him in the attack.
Meanwhile, Robin Knoche has been ruled out for Wolfsburg, who could also be without Vieirinha and Koen Casteels.
Brazilian midfielder Luiz Gustavo is another injury doubt for the visitors, but former Premier League duo Andre Schurrle and Nicklas Bendtner have been included in their squad.
Manchester United possible starting lineup:
De Gea, Jones, Smalling, Blind, Darmian, Schweinsteiger, Schneiderlin, Mata, Depay, Rooney, Martial
Wolfsburg possible starting lineup:
Benaglio, Trasch, Dante, Naldo, Rodriguez, Guilavogui, Arnold, Caligiuri, Schurrle, Draxler, Dost
Head To Head
United and Wolfsburg have played each other twice in the Champions League, with both of those meetings coming in the group stage six seasons ago.
It was the Reds who came out on top on both occasions, as they claimed a 2-1 win at Old Trafford, before a hat-trick from Michael Owen gave them a 3-1 victory in Germany.
We say: Manchester United 3-1 Wolfsburg
United have been in good form since their defeat to PSV and have won all of their previous three games. Meanwhile, Wolfsburg are lacking consistency and in their last away match they were hammered 5-1 by Bayern Munich. It should be an open match with plenty of attacking football at Old Trafford, but we think that the Reds will have too much quality in the final third for their opponents, which is why we are tipping them to claim all three points.
Alex Meyers
