Manchester United vs West Ham United
27 November, 2015
Premier League
Old Trafford

What a time to be a live! Manchester United may progress into the next round of the Europa League after beating Feyenoord on Thursday evening, but that’s hardly what fans, pundits and journalists alike were discussing after the game.

Henrikh Mikhitaryan was fantastic. The Armenian should’ve had a few goals to compliment his performance, as he was easily the best player on the field.

His pace, power and ability to beat a man is something this United side has been missing, especially having a runner who can go past Zlatan Ibrahimovic and play off of him.

Other positives of course were Wayne Rooney, who could be hitting form at a vital time for the Red Devils, with Michael Carrick’s return to the starting line-up making boss Jose Mourinho looking more silly each game.

However West Ham will offer a different prospect to Mourinho’s side, and an almost unpredictable test awaits the Reds.

With the likes of Michael Antonio, Manuel Lanzini and of course Dimitri Payet all available to test a shaky United defence, Mourinho will have to set his side up to play in a way they haven’t this season…efficiently and intelligently.

United will need their big players to step-up tomorrow. Rooney, Ibrahimovic, Pogba. They need to lead this United side this season if they’re to taste any success this season, and it must start tomorrow, with other sides such as Liverpool and Chelsea winning this weekend.

Another player hat has returned in recent weeks is Phil Jones, and he could be Mourinho’s unlikely hero this season if he can say injury-free.

He’s looked strong, quick and powerful, and if he’s able to cut out his rashness in tackling, then he could progress into a top centre-back, just as his fellow Englishman, Chris Smalling, did under ex-boss Louis van Gaal.

Time will tell whether Jones will be able to do so, but being given a run at centre-back and not changing position every game, should give the defender a boost in confidence and the focus to get better.

Team news

Zlatan Ibrahimovic could return to the United line-up after serving his one-match suspension last weekend.

Eric Bailly and Chris Smalling are both our for the Red Devils, with the likes of Wayne Rooney and Henrikh Mikhitaryan pushing to start after impressing in mid-week.

The Hammers will have captain Mark Noble is ready to return to the team after serving a ban, but centre-back Winston Reid will miss the game as he picked up a red-card against Spurs last weekend.

Predicted line-ups

Man Utd: De Gea, Valencia, Jones, Rojo, Shaw; Herrera, Pogba, Rooney; Mata, Ibrahimovic, Mikhitaryan