Premier League: United Must Get First Win Under ten Hag to Calm Everybody Down

Brentford vs Manchester United

There’s a gloomy mood around Old Trafford as several fans have already hit the panic button after losing their first-ever Premier League home match against Brighton.

All the Seagulls needed was nine minutes of brilliance from Pascal Groß to put the game away, and now the Red Devils must pick themselves up when they’ll visit the Bees this Saturday night.

In stark contrast to United, Brentford were also trailing by two goals against Leicester City. However, the Bees showed their character as they fought back to draw level in the second half.

Despite United getting the better of Brentford lately, the pre-match SBOTOP betting odds expect a tight affair. Overall, this is a match that both clubs can’t afford to start as badly as they did in the last time out.

Talking Points

Brentford picking up where they left off

In their first season in English top-flight since 1946-47, Brentford managed to land at the 13^th spot and they’re on track to finish at the same position or even better.

They were aided largely by the addition of Christian Eriksen, but he left this summer to join Manchester United on a three-year deal. That didn’t seem to lower their confidence, though, judging by their performance against Leicester City.

The Foxes were the dominant side in the first half as Timothy Castagne opened the scoring, while Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall doubled their lead one minute after the half-time break.

But Ivan Toney spearheaded the Bees’ comeback as he scored from close range after a botched Leicester City throw-in during the 62^nd minute and he almost scored the equaliser if only his header didn’t go wide minutes later.

Brentford weren’t done as Josh Dasilva came off the bench and struck after 86 minutes to ensure that they’ll start their second successive top-flight season with at least one point.

Looking ahead, Brentford boss Thomas Frank is hopeful to have a few more men back as Sergi Canos, Kristoffer Ajer, and Ethan Pinnock are currently in the recovery room.

Meanwhile, summer addition Mikkel Damsgaard is expected to make his debut and he’ll add more firepower for the Bees.

Same old problems for Manchester United

Manchester United’s midfield and defencive problems reared their ugly head against Brighton, but what made it worse was the fact that they were lacking too up front. If it weren’t for Alexis Mac Allister’s own goal, the Red Devils would’ve been held scoreless.

To address this, they’ve looked at Marko Arnautovic and Cody Gakpo in the transfer market, but there’s nothing imminent for now especially after the fans voiced their displeasure to the club’s pursuit of the former.

The Red Devils were missing Anthony Martial, who was in form during preseason, and Erik ten Hag decided to put Christian Eriksen at the “false-nine” role which unsurprisingly didn’t work.

Cristiano Ronaldo came off the bench but failed to make an impact, although he’s likely to start this weekend should Martial not recover in time.

History

Manchester United have been a huge thorn on Brentford’s side since the latter’s promotion to the English top-flight. The Red Devils swept their season series versus the Bees last term with an aggregate tally of 6-1.

Those six goals versus the Bees was the Red Devils’ second-highest mark against a Premier League opponent behind Leeds United (9). Brentford have also conceded six against Liverpool last season.

Brentford are winless in their six top-flight meetings with Manchester United (D1, L5) since beating them twice way back in the 1936-37 season.

However, the Bees are unbeaten in their first home game in any of their six previous top-flight campaigns (W5, D1), scoring at least twice each time, including a 2-0 victory over Arsenal during their first season back at the Premier League.

The Red Devils are on a six-game losing streak on the road, which is their worst away run of defeats since 1981. They haven’t lost seven straight away league matches since 1936.

Betting Tip

The Premier League 2022 odds are backing Manchester United to win this match, but their margin of error is small. They’re pegged to win at 2.00, while the hosts aren’t far behind at 3.80 in the 1X2 market.

Despite the favourable odds, ask any United supporter and they’ll tell you that it’s hard to put your faith on the Red Devils these days, so perhaps going for a Draw @ 3.30 isn’t a bad idea.

Over 2.25 @ 1.65 is another plausible bet since both sides are likely to feature in the Premier League 2022 highlights reel.

 

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