FA Cup: Manchester United v Chelsea - odds, team news, key stats & verdict

FA Cup: Manchester United v Chelsea

Where to watch

BBC1, 6pm Sunday

Match odds

11-8 Man Utd, 21-10 Chelsea, 5-2 draw.

Form

Even though a last-gasp strike from Michael Obafemi denied Manchester United maximum points against Southampton last time out, they are the in-form club in the Premier League.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men seem to have returned to action with something to prove, winning six and drawing two of their matches in all competitions since the season's resumption.

Prior to the hiatus, United were eight points adrift of Leicester in third but they now find themselves tussling with the Foxes for a top-four berth.

They will be hoping to translate that form to the FA Cup, a tournament in which they have beaten Wolves, Tranmere, Derby and Norwich so far.

Their semi-final opponents Chelsea have also been in good form but the Blues have had a couple of hiccups since the restart, losing a 3-2 thriller away to West Ham and suffering a 3-0 defeat to Sheffield United last week.

They edged already relegated Norwich 1-0 in the league on Tuesday and Frank Lampard's men certainly have defensive vulnerabilities to exploit.

Team news

Left-back Luke Shaw has been key to Manchester United's revival since the restart but his involvement in the semi-final is uncertain after he sustained an ankle injury against Southampton. The potential absence of Brandon Williams (facial injury) could lead to Diogo Dalot being recalled to the Red Devils' line-up.

Chelsea midfielder Billy Gilmour is out and expected to be sidelined for three months after a knee operation.

The tactical battle

It would be easy to suggest United need to work on defending set-plays after conceding from a corner deep in added time against Southampton but there was little that could be done about the divine delivery from James Ward-Prowse.

The Red Devils have, in fact, been fairly solid at the back with clean sheets against Sheffield United, Brighton and Aston Villa since the restart.

The introduction of Bruno Fernandes at the start of the year has seen them evolve into a side who like to keep the ball and that could make for a fascinating contest against a Chelsea team whose Premier League passes tally of 22,040 this term is bettered only by Manchester City's 24,087.

Manchester United may look to utilise their pace on the flanks to counter the Blues, who tend to deploy Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso - players who leave plenty of space behind them - in the full-back positions.

Verdict

Manchester United are the form team in the Premier League and punters should expect their pace in attack and the creativity of Fernandes to prove too much for a flaky Chelsea rearguard, who have shipped eight goals in their last three matches away from Stamford Bridge.

Key stats

• Manchester United have won four of their last five meetings with Chelsea, drawing the other
• Bruno Fernandes has scored four goals and laid on four assists in United's last four matches
• Only one of Chelsea's four FA Cup ties this season has featured over 2.5 goals
• Chelsea have managed only eight clean sheets in the Premier League this term - the same number as Brighton, Everton and Southampton

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