United head to Villa Park looking to bounce back
Injured
By Chris
December 15 2013
Manchester United will look to get their Premier League campaign back on track on Sunday as they visit Villa Park.
The Red Devils head into the game following back-to-back home league defeats, though a mid-week Champions League win over Shakhtar Donetsk will have boosted confidence.
United sit ninth in the Premier League table, and can ill-afford to lose any further ground, with Arsenal currently boasting a 13-point lead over the defending champions.
Arsene Wenger's Gunners failed to extend that lead to 16 points on Saturday lunchtime as they suffered a heavy 6-3 defeat at Man City, with the Citizens' big win sending out a statement of intent to the rest of the division.
United have not boasted a poorer record after 15 league games since 2001. However, from there, they produced eight successive victories as part of a stunning run and mounted an unlikely title challenge, before ultimately finishing third. Fans will be hoping the visit to Villa Park, traditionally a happy hunting ground for United, could spark a similar run!
Villa will go level on points with United should they win, and could even leap-frog the Reds with a win by three goals or more. They will, however, be without skipper Ron Vlaar through injury, whilst midfielder Fabian Delph is suspended after collecting five yellow cards.
Striker Robin van Persie is sidelined for one month with a thigh problem so will not feature, whilst Michael Carrick and Marouane Fellaini are also ruled out.
On-form frontman Wayne Rooney, hunting for his 150th league goal for United, is set to make his 500th club appearance in Sunday's 1.30pm kick-off.