Manchester United vs Everton

Old Trafford is the venue as Manchester United and Everton go head-to-head in a high-stakes Premier League match-up.

Manchester United’s stuttering pursuit of a second successive top-four finish took a fatal blow last weekend as they gave up an early lead in a 3-1 defeat to Manchester City, falling 11 points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa. Erik ten Hag’s future at Old Trafford is in the balance after the Red Devils lost a Premier League fixture when leading at halftime for the first time since September 2014. Everton’s visit should put a smile on the Dutchman’s face, considering he has won all four previous H2Hs in charge of United, with his side netting 2+ goals on each occasion, including a 3-0 thumping in December’s reverse fixture. On top of that, they’ve not lost a home league encounter against Everton since 2013, racking up five wins and four draws in nine such contests afterward.

Like Ten Hag, his Everton counterpart Sean Dyche is under pressure after a 3-1 home loss to West Ham last weekend condemned the Toffees to a tenth consecutive Premier League game without a win (D5, L5). Luckily for the Merseyside outfit, an independent commission reduced their ten-point deduction for breaching spending rules to six a fortnight ago, steering them five points clear of the bottom three. However, the visitors have been a disaster in the front third this season, with only the bottom two sides netting fewer goals than Everton’s 29. As if that’s not worrying enough, Dyche’s side had failed to get on the scoresheet on three straight Premier League travels before a 1-1 draw against Brighton last time out.