Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson has made a clear scoreline prediction for Ruud van Nistelrooy’s final match in charge of Manchester United against Leicester City.
Ruud van Nistelrooy was placed in charge of Manchester United last week after Erik ten Hag was sacked by the Premier League club last week.
The 48-year-old Dutchman kicked off his interim managerial spell at Old Trafford with a 5-2 win over Leicester City in the Carabao Cup in the round of 16.
United went on to pick up a 1-1 draw over Chelsea at Old Trafford last week before beating Greek side PAOK at home in the Europa League on Thursday evening.
Sunday’s Premier League clash against Leicester City will mark the end of Van Nistelrooy’s interim spell ahead of the November international break.
Van Nistelrooy, who returned to Old Trafford in the summer as part of Erik ten Hag’s coaching staff, is expected to leave United at the end of the week.
Merson on Amorim at Man Utd
Speaking in his Sportskeeda column, Paul Merson insisted that incoming Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim faces a tough task at Old Trafford.
United triggered Ruben Amorim’s release clause and paid Sporting CP a £9.25m fee to bring the 39-year-old Portuguese manager to the Premier League club.
Amorim, who has received praise for his work at Sporting CP, has inked a contract with United until June 2027 and will arrive at the club on 11th November.
Merson remains unsure if Amorim will immediately be able to implement his style of play at United, with the Sporting CP boss known for playing three at the back.
“I watch Manchester United and I really think Ruben Amorim has his work cut out at Old Trafford,” he said.
“You could say he probably has an advantage because we aren’t expecting much. But I watch all the other big teams and all of them have a plan in place, Manchester United don’t.
“When you look at the system that Amorim deploys at Sporting and you look at United, you don’t really know how many players at Old Trafford can pull that off.
“It doesn’t tick any box. Who will be the three at the back considering all their centre-backs available for selection aren’t the quickest? What about the wing-backs?
“They don’t have a proper goalscoring No 9 like Viktor Gyokeres or two creative No 10s.”
Merson talks Man Utd star and scoreline prediction
Merson has raised his concerns around United summer signing Joshua Zirkzee, who has only scored once in 16 matches across all competitions from the Red Devils.
Netherlands striker Joshua Zirkzee arrived at Old Trafford in July after the Red Devils signed him for Erik ten Hag for a deal worth £36.54m from Bologna.
The 23-year-old Dutch forward made an instant impact on his United debut in August after he came off the bench and scored the winner against Fulham.
However, Zirkzee has struggled in the final third since the 1-0 Premier League win over Fulham at Old Trafford in August and has received criticism over his role.
“I also wanted to speak about Joshua Zirkzee,” Merson added.
“I don’t know where he plays, what his identity is as a player. If you’re always behind the eight ball at Manchester United, it’s tough for you as a player.
“Mason Mount suffers from it, so did Anderson and many other players back in the day.”
Merson revealed that he is backing Ruud van Nistelrooy to end his interim spell on a high note with a 3-1 victory over Leicester City at Old Trafford.
“Leicester did well to rescue a point against Ipswich last weekend,” he said.
“A defeat in that game would’ve been catastrophic for them. Jamie Vardy should remain fit throughout the season, if they are to avoid relegation.
“I think there’s only one winner in this game though, and it’s not Leicester.”
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