ENGLISH PREMIER BETTING PREVIEW - CHELSEA VS MANCHESTER UNITED

English Premier

2025-05-16 - Chelsea vs Manchester United

A Sports Betting Preview by Auls

Chelsea v Manchester United
Football: English Premier League
Friday 16th May 2025 - Kick Off 8:15pm
This game is live on TV

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Chelsea

The first half sending off suffered by Nicolas Jackson made things very difficult for Chelsea in the North East on Sunday, but the manager may have been disappointed that they were still not able to secure a priceless point. Instead the 2-0 defeat to Champions League chasing rivals Newcastle United has put Chelsea in a tough spot and they can ill-afford to drop more points in their last home game of the campaign.

Despite the defeat, Chelsea held onto 5th place in the standings thanks to Nottingham Forest's 2-2 draw with Leicester City and that leaves Enzo Maresca's team in control of their own destiny. The Blues have a 11-5-2 record at Stamford Bridge in the top flight this season and anything less than a victory on Friday night may feel like a defeat.

Chelsea had won 5 in a row in all competitions and have a Conference League Final to look forward to, but that run was ended in the 2-0 defeat at Newcastle United. The side have won 3 in a row at Stamford Bridge overall, while the Premier League run has been even stronger with 7 wins in their last 8 here.

Nicolas Jackson is suspended and Christopher Nkunku is a doubt, but Marc Guiu may return to lead the line. Jadon Sancho is set to be sent back to Manchester United at the conclusion of the season, and he cannot play against his parent club.

Manchester United

The brutal honesty of Ruben Amorim is refreshing, but there were one or two comments after the latest Manchester United loss that underlined his current frustration. A big summer is coming up for the manager and the club and they will need to be so much better in August, while some believe the Europa League Final is just about as important a match Manchester United will be playing since Sir Alex Ferguson retired as manager.

Like his counterpart at Tottenham Hotspur, Ruben Amorim has to have one eye on Bilbao and the upcoming Europa League Final, even if it is has come at a cost in the Premier League form. Unbelievably, Manchester United are 16th in the standings and the decline is clear when you think last season was the lowest finish in the Premier League era (8th). The manager has stated that this is the worst Manchester United team in fifty years and you cannot argue when they are set for their lowest finish in the top flight since 1974, which ended in relegation.

Manchester United are the only unbeaten team playing in Europe, but the Premier League form has been completely the opposite. The loss to West Ham United means Manchester United have been beaten in 5 of the 7 League games played since the March international break with the exceptions both ending in draws. The side have lost 3 of their last 4 away Premier League games.

Leny Yoro picked up an injury on Sunday and the body language suggests he could be missing for the remainder of the campaign. Matthijs de Ligt and Diogo Dalot are in a race against time to be available on Wednesday, while the manager may choose to rest any player that is expected to start in the Europa League Final.

Head to Head

The game between these clubs at Old Trafford finished 1-1 earlier in the season.

Chelsea had not won any of 7 home games against Manchester United and that run was set to be extended when trailing 2-3 last season going into injury time.

Cole Palmer had something to say about that against his boyhood club and scored twice in the additional time to help Chelsea to a 4-3 win.

Prediction

There is no doubt that this is a fixture that means so much more to Chelsea compared with Manchester United, but that also means additional pressure on the home team.

That can only become tougher to deal with considering fans will arrive at Stamford Bridge with a sense of expectation- they will believe Manchester United are going to be playing a weakened team and so Chelsea will be expected to exploit that, much as so many other clubs have managed to do in recent weeks and months.

Ruben Amorim has not looked very happy with some of what he has seen, but the manager is going to be well aware of the fact that this fixture means little in the grand scheme of things. All of the focus is on beating Tottenham Hotspur in Bilbao and the players have performed like it has been 'Bilbao or Bust' in their attitude to Premier League games.

After seeing Leny Yoro pick up a knock that may rule him out of the Final, Amorim is not expected to take too many risks with his line up.

We saw what Chelsea were able to do against a demotivated Liverpool team visiting Stamford Bridge earlier this month, but they will be frustrated by Nicolas Jackson's foolish sending off. It does leave Chelsea looking a little light in the forward area, especially with Jadon Sancho also ineligible, and so this may become a bit more awkward if the home team do not come out with the right attitude.

More often than not in recent games at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea have found the right approach and they can out-hustle a Manchester United team thinking past this fixture.

Last season Chelsea snapped a long wait for a home win over Manchester United thanks to two injury time goals, but this time they are expected to be much more comfortable than that. If they score early, they may find the visitors losing any real interest in the fixture and that is where Chelsea should be able to take control not only on the night, but of one of the five Champions League places on offer going into the final weekend.

The Pick :

Chelsea 3-1 Manchester United

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

I'll suggest Chelsea - 1.5 Asian Handicap at 2.04 with Bet365