Friendly
2010-07-28 - MLS All Stars XI vs Manchester United
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football : Club Friendly
Wednesday 28 July 2010 - Kickoff 7:30pm Local Time (1:30am BST)
MLS All Stars XI
The MLS All Stars play their annual fixture against an international side and will be hoping to continue their recent successes in this game. This is the final leg of the Manchester United tour of the United States for the first time in 6 years and the All Stars should have picked up some confidence after seeing the Kansas City Wizards provide a surprise 2-1 win over United on Sunday evening.
This will be the first All Star game to be played in the State of Texas and takes place from Reliant Stadium in Houston where 70,000 fans are expected to converge. It was initially suggested that a club side would be brought across from Mexico to fulfil the fixture, but was later announced that United would provide the opposition.
Landon Donovan is the biggest name in the All Star team and the one player that will be recognised over in Europe. Juan Pablo Angel, formerly of Aston Villa, will not be starting this season. Guillermo Barros Schelotto, a veteran player formerly of Boca Juniors will be helping pull the strings in midfield while United States international, Chad Marshall, will be providing the experience at the heart of a 3 man defence. The All Stars are expected to start in a 3-5-2 formation.
The All Stars are yet to lose a game against foreign opposition and have 4 of their last 5 matches, all against British sides. Everton managed a 1-1 draw last season meaning they were the first British team to avoid defeat to the this side. West Ham United, Celtic, Fulham and Chelsea have all been beaten previously.
Manchester United
Sir Alex Ferguson may be aware that these matches are all in preparation for the new season that begins in a little over 2 weeks time, but he could not hide his disappointment with the defeat to Kansas City on Sunday. His World Cup stars have not been brought along on this tour as they were given an extended period of time to recover from their exploits and this has meant that a younger team has generally taken to the field.
United started their tour of North America with a win over Celtic in Toronto, Canada, and followed that up with a tight 0-1 win at Philadelphia Union before the defeat to Kansas City. The defence has generally been given an inexperienced feel with the likes of Chris Smalling and Richi de Laet playing big parts in the side.
It seems that both Antonio Valencia and Darren Fletcher will be missing for this game with minor injuries. We can expect the likes of Smalling and Jonny Evans to begin in defence while Nani may be given more time to reach his optimum fitness. Dimitar Berbatov should continue up front and there may possibly be a debut in the red shirt of United for Javier Hernandez.
Prediction
I do not like betting on friendly games mainly because of the nature of the match but I feel there may be a little bit of value in this game.
Manchester United have been given a price that looks far too short in this country (being the UK) and might be worth taking on as they look to recover their fitness in time for the new season. With many of their established players training back at Carrington in England, the younger players have found it a little tougher to unlock the defences they have faced and could be a burden for them again on Wednesday.
The MLS All Stars will be hoping to make a point about the strength of the League they play in as well as showcasing their talents for potential money spinning moves to Europe and should be more than motivated to put in a performance. Add to this the confidence boost they must have surely got from Kansas City's performance and the superior fitness levels with this being the middle of their domestic campaign, and there is a real case for the All Stars here.
Some people may think it is worth a little gamble to take the big looking odds for an All Star win, but I will play a little safer a pick them not to lose at a price of 2.15
The Pick :
MLS All Stars 2-1 Manchester United
