Manchester United vs Partizan Belgrade 08/11/19

8 November 2019

Manchester United will be looking to maintain an unbeaten start to their UEFA Europa League (EL) campaign when they tackle Partizan Belgrade at Old Trafford.

Sitting top of Group L, the hosts have won two of their opening three EL fixtures (D1), both of which have come via the same 1-0 scoreline. The Red Devils are the only team in Europe’s second-tier competition that is yet to concede a goal, but for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men, goals have been at a premium too. After taking a 1-0 lead into halftime in both of their EL triumphs, the Premier League heavyweights have failed to hit the net in the second half on both of those occasions and have also struggled to produce a single shot on target in a dismal goalless draw against AZ Alkmaar. Additionally, after a 4-0 demolition of Chelsea in the Premier League curtain-raiser, United have scored under 1.5 goals per home fixture in the subsequent six games in all competitions (W2, D3, L1).

Meanwhile, the visitors have endured mixed fortunes at the beginning of their group stage campaign (W1, D1, L1), with their only win coming away from home (2-1 over Astana). Partizan’s defensive frailties have seen them fail to keep a clean sheet in all three of their opening EL fixtures and concede the opener in both of their home matches. However, the Black-Whites have bagged precisely one goal in all four halves of the EL football played before losing to United last time out. But, it will be a daunting prospect for Partizan to walk away from Old Trafford with points, as they’ve suffered seven defeats in eight trips to England, winning once along the way.