Bournemouth v Manchester United: Premier League – stay | Premier League

Afternoon everybody and welcome to a contest that would have been a cracker. Bournemouth, who had been fifth at Christmas, ought to nonetheless be within the fascinating tussle for Champions League locations. Manchester United, who had been solely 4 factors off the highest three when Ruben Amorim arrived, needs to be there or thereabouts too. As a substitute this sport pits tenth in opposition to fifteenth, and the primary curiosity lies in seeing whether or not Bournemouth can do the double over United. That is changing into a well-known feeling for Amorim – Newcastle did it, Forest did it, even Ange’s Spurs did it – however can be a primary for Bournemouth.

On kind you may anticipate each these groups to lose. For the previous three months, they’ve been as dangerous as one another within the league. Each have performed 10, received 2, drawn 3 and misplaced 5. Each have conceded 14 objectives throughout that run, whereas Bournemouth have scored 11 and United 10. Solely the relegated golf equipment have finished worse.

Opta makes Bournemouth heat favourites to win as we speak, with a 54pc likelihood to United’s 22. Within the reverse fixture Bournemouth received 3-0, regardless that, based on xG on fbref, United had barely the higher probabilities (2.2-1.6). “The sport was fairly stage,” Andoni Iraola stated on Friday. “It was not a 3-0 sport.” But when anybody can get his workforce out of their droop, it’s United. Bournemouth are simply the type of opponents – mid-table, properly drilled, medical on the counter – that Amorim’s again 5 can’t deal with.

For the travelling followers, as in the event that they didn’t have sufficient sorrows already, there’s a bitter piece of historical past beckoning on the lengthy journey residence. With Liverpool taking part in straight afterwards, that is most likely the final time United will take the sphere as the one English workforce with 20 league titles. When Virgil van Dijk lifts the Premier League trophy, it is going to deepen the curious resemblance between the 2 golf equipment. They’re like a pair of brothers who’re so busy shouting at one another that they’ll’t see how comparable they’re.