Both Manchester United and Everton will be desperate to win this weekend’s Premier League opener when they square off at Old Trafford on Saturday at 2.30pm.
The hosts have seen their top-four ambitions slip away with back-to-back defeats to Manchester City and Fulham leaving them in sixth place - 11 points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa with 11 games to go.
The visitors, meanwhile, are winless in 10 outings with five defeats and five draws, leaving them down in 16th place - just five points above the drop zone.
For United to return to winning ways and to keep their Champions League dream alive, rightback Diogo Dalot reckons they must dala what they must to get the job done.
The 24-year-old was nominated for the club’s Player of the Month award for February for his performances up and down the right touchline.
It’s his ability to work as hard on attack as on defence that makes the Portugal international such a key player in the team.
Back to Old Trafford on Saturday 👊#MUFC || #PL pic.twitter.com/z2Tg33z1ZE
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) March 6, 2024
And he tells the Man U website ahead of tomorrow’s game: “I just like to say this: it’s our game. Not just me but every fullback that plays in the team. They need to be ready to help the team going forward and to defend. So these are the demands and standards for the club.
“Especially for a fullback, if you want to help on the attack, and at the same, it’s trying to be a good defender. You need to have energy...”
Taking an early look at Erik's options for Saturday ⤵️#MUFC || #PL
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) March 7, 2024
Toffees defender James Tarkowski, though, will try and stop United from making it a league double over his team, after winning 3-0 at Goodison Park in the reverse fixture.
With only five goals scored in their last eight Prem matches and wasting a vrag kanse in their 3-1 defeat to West Ham last time out, Tarkowski says: “We’ve got to take onus as players. The manager sets us up to go and play in a certain way - we do it, we create chances, defend well but we just don’t put the ball in the back of the net and it comes back to punish us in the end…
“In general, we just have to score so many more goals with the chances we’re creating - it’s not just one person missing chances, it’s the whole team.”
The latest team news in full following Sean Dyche's #MUNEVE press conference.@wearfigs 🔵 #EFC
— Everton (@Everton) March 7, 2024
Weekend’s Prem fixtures
Saturday: Man United v Everton (2.30pm), Wolves v Fulham, Bournemouth v Sheffield United, Crystal Palace v Luton (all 5pm), Arsenal v Brentford (7.30pm)
Sunday: Aston Villa v Tottenham (3pm), Brighton v Forest, West Ham v Burnley (both 4pm), Liverpool v Man City (5.45pm).
dailyvoice@inl.co.za