Manchester United v Bournemouth predictions: Hosts to edge a close Old Trafford encounter | OneFootball

Manchester United host a high-flying Bournemouth side in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon, with the Cherries looking to keep up their chase for the European places while United continue to build under Ruben Amorim (2pm).

Just three points separate these two sides despite the gap in the table, with Bournemouth sitting in sixth on 25 points, and United all the way down in 13th with 22.

Bournemouth could find themselves as high as fourth by the end of the weekend if results go their way, highlighting the brilliant job Andoni Iraola is doing, though their last-minute draw to West Ham earlier this week shows that they can be vulnerable at times.

United’s win in the Manchester derby provided short-lived optimism after they lost 4-3 to Spurs in a comical encounter in the Carabao Cup, though there’s been a marked improvement in performances under Amorin, if not always in results.

And with home advantage on their side, United are the favourites ahead of the match, with a best-price of 17/20 available on betting sites for a Red Devils win.

Manchester United v Bournemouth betting preview: United can see of Cherries

Both sides have shown fairly mixed results in recent weeks, with Bournemouth likely to be disappointed at their draw against West Ham. United will have been elated at their late turnaround against City, though their performance against Spurs once again showed that this is a side lacking quality in key areas.

Perhaps most importantly, the match showed that teams can get a goal almost from nowhere against United – the Red Devils have conceded 14 goals across Amorim’s eight matches in charge.

While United are fairly heavy favourites – Bournemouth are as big as 16/5 to get a win with some betting apps – the Cherries have scored at least once in their last nine games, so expect them to test the home defence.

And with home advantage on their side and a team that is beginning to adapt to their new manager’s way of playing, football betting sites are backing United to get the home win, so a wager on the Red Devils to win, with both teams to score, could offer good value at 11/5 with bet365.

Amad Diallo has grasped his opportunity in the first team since the departure of Erik ten Hag, with the Ivorian consistently being United’s most impressive player since early November.

The 22-year-old scored a memorable derby winner last week and a fortunate consolation against Spurs in midweek, and he has profited from a positional change that is frequently getting him into more advanced areas.

While originally deployed as a wing-back under Amorim, Diallo is now used in a more advanced role as one of the attacking midfielders. This has contributed to an improved attacking output, with the Ivorian grabbing six assists and two goals since Amorim arrived.

With four assists in his last four matches, Diallo has become a key cog in the United attack, and William Hill have priced him at 7/2 to get an assist. The fact that the youngster is priced at just 21/20 to either score or assist shows you that Premier League betting sites think he’s pretty likely to have a say on the afternoon’s result.

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