Manchester United will look to assert their dominance as they host Aston Villa this weekend with the return of Premier League action.
After an eventful international week of football for the Reds, players like Marouane Fellaini and Wayne Rooney will be looking to bring their momentum onto the Old Trafford pitch, welcoming a rejuvenated Aston Villa side steadily on the rise under the management of Tim Sherwood.
Following a disappointing draw with the Villains in December, United will look to seal all three points at home in a dominating fashion in hopes of clinching a top four position. However with Villa’s recent run of good form, having produced three wins out of four games in the month of March, they could prove to be a tough cookie to crumble.
It will be interesting to see how Van Gaal goes about this fixture in regards to the squad. Radamel Falcao was the lone goal scorer the last time the two sides met, and his confidence will be on a high following the goals he scored for Colombia over the international break.
All in all, the Dutchman has done a tremendous job of rebuilding the reputation of Manchester United at the Theatre of Dreams proving it really is a fortress.
Taking the maximum three points could also become crucial for the two sides. A win for the Red Devils could see them leapfrog both Arsenal and Manchester City to climb into second place, although a defeat could see Liverpool close the gap to just two points in a closely-contested battle for European qualification.
The hosts, on the other hand, could sink into the relegation zone if the attacking dominance becomes too much to handle for the West Midlands outfit. Sunderland and Burnley trail by just one and two points respectively, causing another intimate battle at the opposite end of the table. A victory could see them rise a single place, ahead of Hull City.
Will Tim Sherwood and his squad be able to rise to the occasion in Manchester? We will have to wait and see as the teams meet on Saturday with a 3.00pm kick-off.
