Thomas Tuchel will face arguably his first major domestic test as Chelsea manager when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer takes his Manchester United squad to Stamford Bridge on Sunday. This game is a Champions League 6 pointer with both managers keen to ensure that they do not lose rather than go all out for the win.

Tuchel is still experimenting to find his best eleven; but, for a game such as this, you can expect him to start N’Golo Kante beside Mateo Kovacic in a compact, defensive-minded double pivot. In Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial, Edinson Cavani and Mason Greenwood, Manchester United pose a major counter-attacking threat. The creativity of Bruno Fernandes and Luke Shaw can release the pacey forward players. Tuchel must pay special attention to closing down these players.

Solskjaer is often accused of overusing the defensive double pivot to shield his defence, particularly against weaker opposition. He is, however, expected to deploy a defensive double-pivot away to Chelsea with Fred and Nemanja Matic expected to start. Manchester United will also need to be compact defensively to counter the threat of Mason Mount, Timo Werner and Marcos Alonso.

As Tuchel experiments to find his best 11, it is ironic that he will be without Thiago Silva, the player he knows best from their time at PSG, due to injury. Up to press time, Chelsea have not reported any other fitness doubts. For Manchester United, Paul Pogba is out (thigh injury), Edinson Cavani, Donny Van De Beek, Daniel James and Scott McTominay will undergo late fitness tests.

Both teams played to a goalless draw at Old Trafford in late October. Chelsea being the home team this time around, may seek to provide the attacking initiative. Statistically, they have also retained more ball possession than Manchester United for the current EPL season. Having more of the ball could lead to more goal attempts, but this is not always the case. Both teams possess excellent quality on set pieces, so they will be wary of giving away fouls in dangerous positions.

Solskjaer has the advantage of having a settled squad. He has the right players for the successful counter-attacking style that has worked for him this season, but fitness issues could rule out critical players. Tuchel has a nearly fully fit squad, but players suited to the previous manager’s system do not fit his tactical setup. Regardless, Tuchel will be under pressure to not lose at home to a Champions League rival. He will set up his team in a pragmatic way to ensure he does not lose this game.

Aston Villa could be making the trip up the M1 to Elland Road on Saturday without influential captain and talisman Jack Grealish.  Grealish missed the 1-2 loss to Leicester City and he is 50/50 to play against Leeds. Villa have one of the smallest squads in the Premier League, so Dean Smith is unlikely to risk him for this fixture. Villa will be looking to make things right as Leeds beat them by 0-3 at Villa Park in late October thanks to a Patrick Bamford hat trick.

Grealish is the most fouled player in the EPL by a country mile. He plays a pivotal role in retaining possession. He helps move Villa up the field into the attacking third. Regardless of the Villa line up, Leeds are likely to dominate possession against Aston Villa.  More possession usually means more goal attempts, and Leeds average 14.3 shots per game at home while Villa average 12.6 shots in away games.

Leeds will take confidence from the clean sheet kept in the dominant 3-0 victory against Southampton on Tuesday; the team will be looking to keep another clean sheet at home. Leeds will, however, be vulnerable to the counter-attacking threat posed by the pace and power of Ollie Watkins, who can get in behind the Leeds defence. He has scored 4 goals in the last 7 games. In Ross Barkley and Bertrand Traore, Villa have goal-scoring threats from midfield. Both Full backs also love to get forward. Right-back Matty Cash will miss this game due to injury, so Elmohamady is likely to come in.

Villa will need the attackers to get in on the action as the team has not managed to score more than 1 goal in a game since the 3-2 loss to Burnley on January 27th. Aston Villa can count on a compact and well-organised defence that has only let in 1 goal in the last 3 matches. Villa’s defence will face a stern test from in-form Patrick Bamford and Raphinha, who will get chances to score. The Leeds midfield is adept at creating chances to score. The midfielders are excellent with their ball-playing abilities.

Despite the absence of influential players like Kalvin Phillips, Rodrigo Moreno and Robert Koch, Leeds have been coping. Mateusz Klich and Jamie Shackleton are also carrying knocks and will face late fitness tests. Emi Martinez has been heroic in goal for Villa, but Leeds have the firepower to cause problems.

If Marcelo Bielsa can nullify the counter-attack threat by holding a deep defensive line when out of possession, his Leeds team should find it comfortable against Villa again. A win would get Leeds up to 8th place ahead of Aston Villa. Dean Smith sitting in 8th place with 2 games in hand, will be the happier manager with a draw. Smith must ensure that his midfielders protect the back four against a formidable Leeds attack.