Having lost Sigurdsson to Everton, Swansea host Manchester United at their most vulnerable when the two sides meet tomorrow evening. After their successful opening weekend victory against West Ham, Manchester United will look to add more salt to Swansea’s wounds. Swansea manager Paul Clement will expect his players to nullify, if not beat their opposition players in their one-on-one battles if they want to take anything out of this game.
Here are some key battles to look out for as Swansea lock horns with Manchester United.
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Rashford v/s Naughton
Rashford is likely to feature in his familiar role of LW. He ran down the wings to devastating effect and gave Zabaleta a reality check as he tormented the Argentinian throughout 90 minutes.
Against Swansea, he will be up against Kyle Naughton.
Though Naughton is not blessed with pace, he has defensive agility. He will be a level above Zabaleta and will prove to be a much better defensive option against Rashford. One area where he might dominate is his experience; he has regularly played at LB for the Swans and given that it’s a home fixture, he would love to go in for a tackle and give Rashford a tough time.
It is also important to note that, while Mkhitaryan had an influential game against West Ham; most of his contributions were through the centre. Rashford’s side gave a much more attacking edge to Manchester United and his nullification might give an advantage to Swansea.
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Lukaku v/s Mawson and Fernandez
Lukaku has established himself as a proven goal scorer in the Premier League. Tomorrow, he may find himself up against the defensive pairing of Mawson and Fernandez. While the Swansea pair have luck to thank for their clean sheet against Southampton, they are up against a meaner attack force on Sunday.
Lukaku will look for those runs in between the spaces which might make them play narrow, giving Manchester United wingers with the space to seize the initiative if needed.
Should they be too tight to Lukaku? Given his physical presence, it doesn’t seem like either will come as the victor; but pressuring him into losing possession might be key. Lukaku has a chink in his armour for when it comes to his first touch. Maybe they can exploit this?
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Britton v/s Pogba
Paul Pogba was a close Man of the Match contender during Manchester United’s resounding 4-0 win against West Ham. It may seem like United’s record signing is enjoying his free attacking role that was possible due to the acquisition of Nemanja Matic. However, he will come against Leon Britton. His frail build may make this seem like a mismatch but he has the ability of dispossessing the opponent with ease. Swansea is a beneficiary of his tiresome work in midfield. Though not a guarantee, Paul will not enjoy the same freedom against Swansea.
These key battles might, to a certain extent, decide which way the tide will turn to as the next game week of Premier League dawns upon us!
