Manchester United Women have five games remaining to keep their hold on third spot in the Women's Super League, making Sunday's outing against a struggling Everton Ladies side a must-win occasion.
The Toffees currently sit ninth and will finish in a mid-table position come the end of this campaign, which has not lived up to the expectations of the club.
Match preview
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Marc Skinner's side dropped two points last time out against West Ham United, who scored a 93rd-minute equaliser to level the scoreline at 1-1, after Ella Toone had given the visitors an early second-half lead.
The Red Devils would have been disappointed with that result as they came very close to claiming all three points, and they did have their opportunities to extend their lead, recording six shots on target in total.
Man United have had time to reflect on that match as they have not played since March 16, which has given them, and others, the opportunity to recoup energy ahead of a final push at the end of this season.
Skinner's team are currently only ahead of Manchester City on goal difference, meaning that their destiny is in their own hands but if they have the chance to defeat Everton by a heavy margin on Sunday, then they must take that with both hands.
From their eight home fixtures so far, United have taken 16 points from a possible 24, but Sunday's outing will be their first match at Old Trafford, which is expected to give the hosts a huge boost.
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The Toffees have played two games since Man United last played, both against Man City, one in the FA Cup and the other in the WSL, with Chris Roberts's side losing 4-0 on both occasions.
Last time out, Everton allowed the Citizens to dominate the match in terms of possession and chances created, not giving a lot of opportunity for the Toffees to create any attacking scenarios themselves.
Roberts's team have only netted 14 goals this season, which is a major reason why they are currently placed in the bottom four of the division, and after not finding the back of the net in their last three matches, this weekend is likely to be another frustrating day at the office.
After a promising campaign last year, Everton's goal this season was to challenge for a place in the top three, but that aim was quickly demolished and now it is important to try and finish this campaign as strongly as possible to have some positives heading into next season.
These two teams drew 1-1 in the reverse fixture at Walton Hall Park, but in their last meeting Man United won 2-0 in the League Cup group stages.
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Team News
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Centre-back Millie Turner remains absent from Man United's team due to injury, while Maria Thorisdottir was also forced to miss out against West Ham last time out.
Thorisdottir could return to the side but if the Norwegian international can not feature, midfielder Vilde Boe Risa could fill in at right-back while Diane Caldwell and Ona Batlle operate in the heart of the back four.
Alessia Russo has now overtaken Toone and Leah Galton in the goalscoring chart for Man United, and she will want to top that table on a personal note and she will fancy her chances at finding the back of the net at Old Trafford.
Lucy Graham replaced Izzy Christiansen in Everton's starting lineup last time out, but the English attacking midfielder is expected to regain her place in the side, with Hanna Bennison and Claire Emslie providing the width.
Full-back Leonie Maier also came into the side, and she is likely to keep her name on the team sheet in a back four with Gabrielle George, Megan Finnigan and Danielle Turner.
Manchester United Women possible starting lineup:
Earps; Blundell, Batlle, Caldwell, Risa; Groenen, Zelem, Russo; Galton, Thomas, Toone
Everton Ladies possible starting lineup:
MacIver; Maier, George, Finnigan, Turner; Bjorn, Galli; Bennison, Christiansen, Emslie; Magill
We say: Manchester United Women 2-0 Everton Ladies
Man United will be determined to collect all three points with this match being held at Old Trafford, and they should be confident about doing so given their superior league position over Everton.
The visitors will need to be better in possession if they want to get back to scoring ways, but Man United will be a tough test and one that Everton are not favourites to do well in.
Top tip
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 Manchester United Women win with a probability of 76.72%. A draw had a probability of 14.3% and a win for Everton Ladies had a probability of 9.01%.
The most likely scoreline for a Manchester United Women win was 2-0 with a probability of 10.7%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 3-0 (9.62%) and 2-1 (8.88%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (6.59%), while for a Everton Ladies win it was 1-2 (2.73%). The actual scoreline of 3-1 was predicted with a 8% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Manchester United Women would win this match.
