Buoyed by the news of Ralf Rangnick's imminent appointment, Manchester United travel to Chelsea for Sunday afternoon's tantalising Premier League encounter.
The Blues remain top of the pile with 29 points from their opening 12 games, whereas Michael Carrick's side sit seven places and 12 points below the European champions.
Match preview
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Often criticised for a perceived unfairness towards their academy players - with countless names currently out on loan - Chelsea's youth products stole the show against Juventus as the Champions League holders ran out convincing 4-0 winners at Stamford Bridge.
Trevoh Chalobah, Reece James and Callum Hudson-Odoi all struck for the Blues before Timo Werner came off the bench to round off the scoring on his comeback from injury, which has seen Chelsea confirm their rightful place in the last-16 of the tournament.
Thomas Tuchel's side's Premier League fortunes also improved following their 1-1 draw with Burnley before the international break, as the scintillating Blues saw off Leicester City 3-0 at the King Power, with former Foxes lynchpin N'Golo Kante scoring the pick of the bunch.
Victory over Juventus marked Chelsea's ninth win from 10 in all competitions, and the league leaders remain three points clear of Manchester City at the top of the table having conceded a league-low four goals all season - three of which have come at home, though.
However, Matej Vydra's equaliser for Burnley is the only goal that Chelsea have conceded over their last 450 minutes of top-flight football, and United's famed attackers will have their work cut out to impress their soon-to-be interim boss.
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Rumours around Mauricio Pochettino continue to swirl, but as United seek an experienced head to guide them through the remainder of the 2021-22 season, the 'godfather' of the gegenpress - Ralf Rangnick - appears to be Manchester-bound.
Michael Carrick led the Red Devils to a much-needed 2-0 Champions League win over Villarreal in midweek to book their spot in the knockout rounds, and the Englishman will have the chance to pit his wits against Chelsea this week, with Rangnick not set to be appointed in time for a Tuchel reunion.
Not one United fan needs reminding of how Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's reign came to the most dismal of finishes at Watford last time out in the Premier League, and Carrick's first top-flight game in charge starts with the Red Devils lying eighth in the table before the weekend's games kick off.
Five of Solskjaer's last seven Premier League games in charge of Man United ended in defeat, and the Red Devils have failed to win back-to-back games on the road in all competitions this term - with a 2-1 defeat to Young Boys sandwiched in between top-flight successes at Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Ham United.
History may be on the Red Devils' side, though, as they are unbeaten in their last seven Premier League meetings with Chelsea - keeping clean sheets in each of their last four - although both highly-anticipated games last term ended goalless.
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Team News
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There are fears that Ben Chilwell could be facing several months on the sidelines after damaging his ACL in the win over Juventus, while N'Golo Kante also suffered a knee injury in that fixture.
Kante's injury is not as serious but he is likely to miss out here alongside Mateo Kovacic, and Kai Havertz remains a doubt with a hamstring strain, while Romelu Lukaku is unlikely to start, according to Tuchel.
Marcos Alonso and Ruben Loftus-Cheek should benefit from Chilwell and Kante's absences this week, and Tuchel has a big call to make over Chalobah as the experienced Cesar Azpilicueta aims to return to the backline.
As for Man United, Harry Maguire saw red in the humiliation at Vicarage Road and will not be available here, with Raphael Varane's injury allowing Eric Bailly the chance to earn a rare start in defence.
Paul Pogba remains out for the long term, and doubts persist over Fred, Edinson Cavani, Luke Shaw and the COVID-positive Mason Greenwood, although Jadon Sancho will aim to hold his spot on the right regardless after finally opening his United account in midweek.
Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford started on the bench against Villarreal, but both players will surely rejoin their teammates in the final third as Donny van de Beek and Anthony Martial drop out.
Chelsea possible starting lineup:
Mendy; Chalobah, Silva, Rudiger; James, Jorginho, Loftus-Cheek, Alonso; Mount, Hudson-Odoi; Werner
Manchester United possible starting lineup:
De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Bailly, Telles; Matic, McTominay; Sancho, Fernandes, Rashford; Ronaldo
We say: Chelsea 2-0 Manchester United
United may possess some of the strongest attacking names the league has to offer and can boast some positive recent results against Chelsea, but Carrick's midfield and depleted defence do not inspire any confidence whatsoever.
If the Blues are capable of producing half as good a showing as they did in midweek - even with a couple more injury woes to contend with - Tuchel's table-toppers should have no problem ending their winless streak against United here.
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Chelsea win with a probability of 55.6%. A draw had a probability of 22.9% and a win for Manchester United had a probability of 21.47%.
The most likely scoreline for a Chelsea win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.42%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (9.86%) and 2-0 (9.48%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (10.84%), while for a Manchester United win it was 0-1 (5.97%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 10.8% likelihood.
