Manchester United vs FC Twente: Prediction, Preview & Betting Tips

Manchester United should overcome FC Twente to kickstart their Europa League in string fashion at Old Trafford.

Manchester United are unbeaten in their last three domestic games, with no goals conceded. The Red Devils record against Dutch opposition is rather superb, having won ten from 19 played, drawn four and losing five. Manchester United have scored 33 goals against Dutch opposition and conceded only 14.

The home side have slightly improved at home in their last four with three wins at Old Trafford, despite the heavy defeat against Liverpool. FC Twente's away record doesn't bode well, as the visitors have only won twice in their previous seven on their travels. This fixture should provide goals as more than 2.5 goals have been scored in four of the previous five involving Manchester United.

For this fixture, we are favouring Manchester United. Erik Ten Hag’s side will see this competition as a viable route for UEFA Champions League qualification and will want to start well here.

Manchester United 3-0 FC Twente.

The Europa League is back underway this season, with a new competition and a new format for clubs to adjust to this season. Manchester United begin their Europa League campaign with a home game against Dutch side FC Twente at Old Trafford.

Date: 25/09/2024
Location: Old Trafford
Kick-Off: 8 pm

The Europa League format, this season, works in the same way as the Champions League format. There are 36 teams involved in this competition and each team has an allotted eight games to play. To qualify for the knockout phase, teams must finish in the top eight of the league phase. Failing this, if a team would finish between 9th and 24th in the league phase, the teams would be drawn into a two-legged play-off phase and from there on the competition would resume like it had done from previous years.

Manchester United have another route into any potential Champions League qualification this season, with yet another entry into the Europa League. The Red Devils qualified for this season’s instalment of the competition by beating Manchester City in the FA Cup Final in May and thus occupying the final spot in the Europa League for English teams. The FA Cup win relegated Chelsea to the UEFA Conference League and Newcastle United out of European contention.

This season has brought more indifferent results for Erik Ten Hag despite the summer signings. Manchester United began the season with an opening-day win over Fulham. However, consecutive defeats against Brighton and Liverpool brought much despair to Old Trafford. The Red Devils bounced back with two wins from their previous three - including a 7-0 humbling of League One’s Barnsley in the Carabao Cup (League Cup).

FC Twente finished third last season in the Eredivisie, four points clear of AZ Alkmaar, however, they finished 15 points second-placed Feyenoord in the race for the UEFA Champions League spots. This season, FC Twente have made a solid start to their league campaign with 11 points from 18 available. One of the more notable results for the visitors was their recent 5-0 win over Almere City.

The game will be shown on TNT Sports 1.

Leny Yoro remains a long-term absentee alongside Luke Shaw for Manchester United. Rasmus Hojlund continues to build up minutes.

Predicted Eleven: Onana, Mazraoui, Maguire, De Ligt, Dalot, Ugarte, Casemiro, Antony, Bruno Fernandes, Rashford, Zirkzee

Predicted FC Twente Eleven: Unnerstall, Van Rooij, Hilgers, Salah-Eddine, Regeer, Eiting, Rots, Steijn, van Bergen, Lammers

The two sides don’t have any recent history in terms of recent fixtures against one another; however, Manchester United does possess a relatively strong record against Dutch opposition. The Red Devils record against Dutch opposition is rather superb, having won ten from 19 played, drawn four and losing five. Manchester United have scored 33 goals against Dutch opposition and conceded only 14.

Manchester United are unbeaten in their previous three games, with two wins and a draw. Their most recent match produced a 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace, which would have frustrated the United faithful because of the number of chances Manchester United created. Their most recent home game produced an emphatic performance over Barnsley with goals from Christian Eriksen (x2), Alejandro Garnacho (x2), Marcus Rashford (x2) and Antony.

FC Twente are in a similar mixed vein of form compared to their hosts Manchester United. The away side have won twice in their previous five games, losing twice and drawing once. FC Twente are also on a three-game unbeaten run in all competitions, with two wins and a draw. In their previous two games, FC Twente have scored seven goals across both games.

Their previous away fixture brought much success in the 5-0 win over Almere City. Sam Steijn was on hand for FC Twente with a brace, which brought his tally to six for the season in six games. Further goals from Sam Lammers, Ricky van Wolfswinkel and Anass Salah-Eddine rounded off an impressive victory for the Dutch side.

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