Ian Wright has backed one of Manchester United’s stars to score a brace when Michael Carrick’s Reds face Crystal Palace at Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon.
Manchester United head back to Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon to face Crystal Palace, fresh from a deserved 1-0 win away at Everton on Monday evening.
Since Michael Carrick took over the first team, United have amassed 16 points from a possible 18, propelling them up to fourth in the Premier League. They are three points clear of Chelsea in fifth, while Liverpool trail by the same margin in sixth.
Palace’s campaign has been far less convincing. After lifting the FA Cup last season, Oliver Glasner has overseen a period of transition following the departure of several key players, leaving the Eagles 13th in the table.
Their recent 90th-minute winner against Wolves, courtesy of on-loan winger Evann Guessand, secured just their second victory in 16 matches. Even so, confidence remains fragile as they prioritise their push for success in the Europa Conference League.
Wright backs Šeško to score two vs Palace
The big question on everyone’s lips ahead of the tie is, does Carrick pick Benjamin Šeško from the start? The Slovenian has scored three crucial goals off the bench against Fulham, West Ham, and Everton recently, but has yet to start under the United boss.
On the latest episode of the Stick to Football podcast, the panel had a go at predicting the weekend’s results. Ex-United captain Roy Keane and Arsenal legend Ian Wright were on one team, while former Reds Gary Neville and Paul Scholes sat across the table issuing their own predictions.
“United are going to beat Palace, surely?” Keane asked his teammate, Wright. “Palace got that big win last week. That’ll just relax them a little bit. 2-0 or 2-1?”
The former England striker replied, stating, “I think give them more. I think Šeško is gonna nick a couple in this. Šeško’s going to start as well. He’s got to start. If Šeško scores two, can we get an extra point?” The pair then settled on a 2-0 United win, with Šeško starting and scoring both.
Meanwhile, Neville predicted a 3-1 win for his former side, while ex-teammate Paul Scholes agreed that he felt the away side would initially score a goal.
Want to stay as up-to-date as possible on the latest Manchester United updates? Add UtdDistrict as a preferred source on Google for news you can rely on.
Šeško starting would be a different test
While Šeško has been stunning as an impact substitute of late, Keane elaborated on the improvements the 22-year-old has shown in the last few weeks, stating that starting a game will be a different beast for Šeško to tackle than coming on in the second half.
“Confidence,” Keane said when discussing Šeško’s rise in form. “But even early on in the season, remember, I think we mentioned what he did, he missed one or two chances, but he was getting into the positions, and you’re thinking, he’s done a lot of the right stuff, and he got a lot of confidence and belief.”
Read More: The secret stat that proves Benjamin Šeško’s Manchester United form is not a coincidence
Neville then questioned whether the Slovenian looks even faster and more powerful than before, and Keane said, “That always occurs when someone’s become good. They just look a bit [better].
“You’ve just mentioned there, attacking players do look a bit [better], the weight’s been lifted off their shoulders.
“Maybe the test will be when you’ve got, no, you’re going to be the main man now, can you take that? He’s coming off the bench and getting up to speed with the game.”
Make sure to follow UtdDistrict on X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok to never miss out on any of our Manchester United content. Our podcast, What the Devil?, is streamed live every Thursday at 14:00 pm (GMT) on the United View YouTube channel.