Competition: English Premier League 2016-17
Date: Saturday, 21th January, 15:00 GMT
Stadium: Bet365 Stadium.
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Stoke City vs Manchester United Preview
Stoke City is currently on a two-game winning streak after being winless in their previous four matches. The team is settled in the ninth spot in the overall standings at the moment, 11 points above the bottom three relegation zone but 15 points below the Europa League spot for next season presently occupied by fifth place squad Manchester City.
In their most recent fixture last Saturday, the Potters pulled off a lopsided 3-1 victory over bottom three team Sunderland on the road at the Stadium of Light, as per The Sun.
A brace from Austrian striker Marko Arnautovic opened the scoring for Stoke City in the 15th and 22nd minutes of the contest. After that, a header by Veteran English forward Peter Crouch off a cross by Scottish midfielder Charlie Adam made it a 3-0 count in the 34th minute.
The Black Cats were able to put themselves on the board five minutes before halftime with a strike by English forward Jermain Defoe.
However, both sides went scoreless in the second half as the halftime score ended up to be the final count in the match.
Meanwhile, Manchester United was held to a 1-1 draw by fellow contending team Liverpool in a game at the Old Trafford last Sunday, the Mirror reported.
The Reds scored the opening goal with a penalty kick by midfielder James Milner following a handball call on United midfielder Paul Pogba after a corner kick.
Zlatan Ibrahimović was able to find the equalizer six minutes left before full-time with a creative header off a pass by defender Antonio Valencia.
The draw snapped United’s six-game winning streak but pulled them closer to cross-city rivals Manchester City, who are now only two points ahead of the sixth-place Red Devils.
Prediction and Predicted Lineup
The predicted result is a tough 1-0 decision for Manchester United.
Stoke City starting lineup (4-2-3-1 formation): Grant; Pieters, Martins Indi, Johnson, Shawcross; Arnautovic, Allen; Whelan, Shaqiri, Adam; Crouch
Manchester United starting lineup (4-3-3 formation): De Gea; Darmian, Rojo, Jones, Valencia; Pogba, Herrera, Carrick; Martial, Mkhitaryan, Ibrahimović
