MU vs Nottingham round 3 Premier League prediction: Favorite opponent

MU vs Nottingham round 3 Premier League prediction 9:00 p.m. Saturday, August 26. The defeat to Tottenham last weekend was a disappointing result for the Red Devils, they need to quickly regain their dignity with a convincing victory at home.

MU toàn thắng trước Nottingham mùa giải năm ngoái (Nguồn: Loopnews)

MU vs Nottingham prediction: MU won all matches against Nottingham last season. (Source: Loopnews)

Nottingham struggled to stay in the top flight last season, and their recent form has not improved much, with an unfavourable start to the season, so their trip to Old Trafford is expected to be a difficult one.

Doubts hang over Old Trafford

It seemed that a lucky victory in the opening match, as well as the lessons learned, would help MU show a better face against Tottenham. However, the 0-2 defeat in the away match in London once again showed the instability of the red team.

Last season the Red Devils performed quite poorly away from home, winning only 8 out of 19 games. And that situation has continued up to now.

In all fairness, they had a decent first half against Tottenham, but in the second half, once again United's midfield was overwhelmed away from home, and conceded as a result.

Many people think that coach Erik Ten Hag is quite conservative, when he still keeps the same starting lineup as in the opening match against Wolves.

That means that out-of-form players like Mason Mount and Garnacho were still used in an important match and the result proved him wrong.

The negative news did not stop there. In the past few days, the Dutch strategist has witnessed more losses of force.

Mason Greenwood has had to call time on his career at Manchester United after the club received a wave of opposition to his return. The two sides are now looking for a way for the young talent to find a new home.

And another Mason has been confirmed injured. The No. 7 has barely settled into his new team and will be out for the next few weeks, meaning he will miss the crucial games against Arsenal and Brighton.

Plus striker Rasmus Hojlund is still racing to make his debut, so at this point, apart from goalkeeper Onana, Ten Hag only has the same players to use.

Among them, Luke Shaw suffered a muscle injury and will have to rest for at least a few weeks.

With this situation, the Dutch strategist had to promote four U21 players to the first team to prepare for the match with Nottingham.

Perhaps, before the summer transfer window closes, Erik Ten Hag is keen to add new signings for this season's Premier League campaign.

Amrabat and Gravenberch are names on the radar, but with United being too slow to sell players who are no longer in the plan, making the shopping process more complicated.

Eriksen khả năng cao sẽ trở lại sát cánh cùng Bruno và Casemiro (Nguồn: Planetsport)

Eriksen is likely to return to play alongside Bruno and Casemiro. (Source: Planetsport)

Nottingham "cut your coat according to your cloth"

Captain Steve Cooper has struggled to steer Nottingham Forest to the top flight and the second season looks set to be a challenge for him.

Last season, the City Ground team spent nearly 200 million Euros on players, leading to a very limited budget this season.

Up to now, they have only officially brought in two notable names: goalkeeper Matt Turner and winger Anthony Elanga, a former MU player. Interestingly, up to now, Elanga is the Red Devils' best player sale, with more than 17 million Euros.

Commenting on the two players mentioned above, Turner is certainly not rated as highly as Dean Henderson and Keylor Navas, Nottingham's goalkeepers last season. While Elanga is still very young, only 21 years old and has also played little at MU.

So essentially, Steve Cooper has to try to make do with a similar squad quality to last season, while many other teams have invested heavily.

The first match, a 1-2 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium was acceptable.

In the second match, we must give praise to Nottingham when they won all 3 points against Sheffield. At home, they still showed a relatively stable attacking ability.

Striker Awoniyi is the brightest spot right now, having scored in two consecutive matches.

However, down below, Nottingham's defensive weaknesses were still evident, as there were many times when Sheffield created good chances, and were very close to scoring their second goal.

Remember, the pressure created at Old Trafford will be much greater!

MU has a very good chance to win

Meeting Nottingham at this time is extremely favorable for the Red Devils to change their appearance, regain their spirit and build trust with fans.

According to statistics, last season the two teams met a total of 4 times in both the Premier League and EFL Cup. MU won all and did not concede any goals.

Nottingham are not a defensive team and are not strong in pressing, so they do not cause much trouble for Ten Hag's team. In other words, this is his favorite opponent.

With the absence of some new recruits, MU will likely return to their old formula.

Eriksen is still a quality passer, returning alongside Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro could completely bring smoothness to the midfield like before.

Up front, with Martial available, he could start as a striker, which would return Rashford to the left wing - the England striker's most comfortable and preferred position.

In theory, these familiar arrangements could bring more freedom and stability to MU, especially in the context of personnel shortages, as well as transfer deadlock.

More than just 3 points, Coach Ten Hag and his players need to bring a more coherent style of play along with a convincing victory. Their fans clearly do not want their team to bring excitement every match when they are in a 50-50 situation with the opponent.

Hopefully there will be an open match, and plenty of attacking from both sides.