West Ham United – Manchester Utd

Manchester United will not be able to extend their winning streak in London.

In mid-January this year Manchester United arranged another planned farewell for yet another coach who hadn't settled at the club. In place of Ruben Amorim came Michael Carrick, who had previously coached Middlesbrough. The justification for such an appointment was obvious. Carrick has spent most of his career at Manchester United and won trophies with the club, if not all, then many. The 44-year-old specialist knows Old Trafford inside out and understands the term Mancunian family better than incoming coaches. And indeed, for more than three weeks now the mood within the Red Devils' camp has been uplifting, and the players play as if they have shed a ton of weight from their legs. Manchester United immediately produced a run of wins and entered the race for a spot in the Champions League. West Ham bears a distant resemblance to the upcoming opponent. At the start of January the Hammers looked hopeless in the fight for survival, on a level with Burnley and Wolverhampton. However the last weeks reassure the supporters of the capital club about success. Finally, Nuno Santos's ideas began to work and bear fruit. Bookmakers have made the visitors the favorites for the upcoming match, offering odds of 1.76 on their victory. Manchester United after Carrick's appointment won all four league matches. The fact that among the defeated were Manchester City and Arsenal is especially reassuring to the team's fans. Another matter is that beating Fulham was achieved thanks to a goal in stoppage time added to the second half, and against Tottenham Hotspur United scored after the Spurs were reduced to ten men. That is, the winning streak has psychological foundations. As Bruno Fernandes said, Carrick simply does not hinder players from expressing themselves as they wish. However against a well-organized opponent such a tactic could lead to a lapse. In Manchester United indeed every single player is either a star or a future star, yet West Ham in recent weeks has distinguished itself by a serious team game. This helped its players win three of the four matches since mid-January. Nuno Santos will be able to pick the right tactics against an opponent playing on momentum.