3 Manchester United players to watch this weekend as they travel to West Ham United in the Premier League
Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be hoping that their encounter with West Ham United on Saturday evening will be more straightforward than his side’s dramatic win over Southampton last week.
After finding themselves 2-0 down at half-time, United completed an impressive second-half comeback, inspired by substitute Edinson Cavani.
United’s performances this season have been far from convincing, with their current league position of 9th reflecting their stop-start campaign.
Their opponents on Saturday, West Ham, are up to an impressive 5th in the league after seeing off Aston Villa 2-1 on Monday.
A win for United could place them within the all-important European qualification positions, while victory for West Ham could see them rise to third.
We take a look at three United players who could play a key role against the Hammers at the London Stadium.
Edinson Cavani
An obvious choice for our top three after his superb performance at St. Mary’s last week, Cavani’s natural goal-scoring instincts could prove to be a real handful for West Ham’s defence. The Uruguayan’s two second-half headers demonstrates that United have a clinical striker on their books – an asset which could prove to be invaluable if they are to mount a charge for the Champions League spots. If Cavani starts, West Ham’s defensive duo of Fabian Balbuena and Angelo Ogbonna will have to be on top of their game to guard against the striker’s clever movement.
Bruno Fernandes
Now one of the first names on United’s team sheet, Bruno Fernandes has established himself as the hub of all things creative. The Portugal international has been one of the league’s stand-out players so far this campaign, with an impressive seven goals and three assists in just nine games. West Ham allowed Jack Grealish far too much space during their match against Villa and they cannot afford to make the same mistake with marksman Fernandes.
Anthony Martial
With Marcus Rashford likely to be absent from Saturday’s match through injury, the onus will be on Anthony Martial to provide pace and, perhaps most importantly, end product at the top end of the pitch. The 24-year-old is yet to register a goal or assist in 380 minutes of league football this season, but on Saturday he has the chance to fill Rashford’s boots and turn flashes of promise into meaningful results.