The holiday season might be great for sports fans, but for Barclays Premier League players, this stretch between Christmas and just after New Year's is nothing short of hell. Everyone has to play three matches in a seven-day span around the holidays, and the last thing that Manchester United needed to see in the second of those three games was a visit from what might be a resurgent Chelsea side eager to prove that it is still one of the top teams in England in spite of its horrendous first half of the year.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
Manchester United +140
Chelsea +190
Draw +230
Over/Under 2.5 (under -125)
ODDS ANALYSIS
No matter how bad things have continued to get this year for Chelsea, it has consistently been favored in just about all of its matches. This was never a fixture in which it was fancied to get all three points, but the fact that it is a +190 underdog is still a bit telling.
Manchester United would've been tipped at the start of the year to be around a +140 favorite where it is sitting right now, but had you told supporters that the Red Devils would be +140 against a 15th place Chelsea side a few days after Christmas, they would've rightfully been infuriated.
KEY INJURIES
If Chelsea is going to get back up the table this year in the Premier League, good health is going to be a part of it. The injury list heading into the holidays isn't so bad, as only Radamel Falcao and Eden Hazard are considered concerns.
The same can't be said for Manchester United. Louis van Gaal is trying to protect his job, and he isn't going to do that if his side doesn't get healthier. Luke Shaw, Marcos Rojo and Jesse Lingard are all likely out for the holiday swing. This though, will be the first match back for Bastian Schweinsteiger after his three-game suspension for violent play to start December.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"Obviously when a manager goes, it's a difficult situation. Everybody is sad about what happened because we haven't played well and won games, so we have to react and do better. Saturday's game was a bit better and obviously we won as well." – Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois reflecting on the first half of a tumultuous season at Stamford Bridge
RECENT FORM
All Chelsea can do is pick up three points at a time. That's what the Blues did in their first game with Guus Hiddink in charge against Sunderland. We'll have to see where it all goes from here, as this is obviously a much tougher challenge than either the game against the Black Cats or the duel against Watford on Boxing Day will be.
Manchester United continues to struggle. The Red Devils have lost three straight matches overall across all competitions. The first against Wolfsburg on German soil wasn't a massive concern, but dropping an away match with Bournemouth and a home date with Norwich City are completely different stories.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Many believe that van Gaal will be shown the door on Boxing Day if the Red Devils don't get three points from Stoke City. That could send this match into a real tailspin, as it's anyone's guess how Man U will react to any potential change.
That said, we still don't know whether Hiddink has pushed the right buttons for Chelsea or not. We're going to find out more on Boxing Day. If the Blues dismiss Watford with no troubles as many expect them to do, they could start to put together a bit of a run. What the ceiling is remains to be seen, but we have a feeling Chelsea is headed for much better in the second half of the year, starting with this soccer match at Old Trafford.
If van Gaal isn't gone by the 28th, he'll surely be gone before the end of the night after this fixture if we're correct with our prediction of how this one will play out.
Chelsea 2, Manchester United 0
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