The race for honours in the latter half of this season will take a decisive turn in the month of December as Manchester United look to put a few shaky weeks behind them.
The Red Devils blistering start to proceedings since August is now a distant memory and Sir Alex Ferguson will be hoping his team can kick on after failing to win their last three games in a miserable streak for the club. If you fancy a flutter on how United fare during December, check out Betfair for the latest Premier League betting odds online!
The Old Trafford outfit begin December’s football with an away trip to Aston Villa. The match kick-offs at Villa Park at 5:30p.m. on the 3rd of the festive month. Each team will be eager to pick up three points and both sides are struggling ahead of this showdown with just a combined single victory in their last six games. Club captain Stiliyan Petrov could make a timely return for the hosts as Dimitar Berbatov joined Fabio and Rafael da Silva on the sidelines on United’s ever-growing injury list.
The 19-time champions of England then square up to FC Basel in a winner-takes-all clash in Switzerland. With United on 9 points and the Swiss champions on 8, anything but a defeat will do for the English side. However the three-time European champions have been particularly off-form around the continent this season and they’ve only won two of their game so far in the Group C, both against minnows Otelul Galati. A last-gasp goal from Ashley Young rescued a point for the visitors in the reverse fixture which ended as a 3-3 draw.
Manchester United then welcome Wolves to the Theatre of Dreams as they hope to maintain their stuttering chase on Manchester City in the title race. The away side have lost four of their last five in a wretched run of form with their sole win coming against lowly Wigan.
Richard Stearman and Kevin Foley will be Mick McCarthy’s only worries for the game as Karl Henry will return since his suspension will have expired. It will without doubt be a keenly-contested match as one team is fighting for their lives to stay in the division while the other is hoping to win it.
The Reds then make the trek down to London where they play against recently promoted side, QPR. Neil Warnock’s men have beaten Stoke City, Chelsea and Everton but suffered big losses to Bolton and Fulham in a season of soaring highs and rock-bottom lows so far for them. They are currently without a long list of star players as DJ Campbell, Kieron Dyer and Paddy Kenny are long-term absentees for the R’s. Sir Alex Ferguson will treat this game very seriously as there’s no telling what their unpredictable opponent’s will bring to the pitch on the day.
The last of United’s pre-Christmas games is another trip to the capital as they visit Craven Cottage to take on Fulham. Martin Jol’s side linger dangerously over the relegation zone going into the final month of the year despite many solid performances thus far. However they’ve failed to translate into results as they remain just a loss away from slipping into the drop zone.
Simon Davies could make his long-awaited return for this game but Zdenek Grygera is certainly out in an otherwise fully-fit squad for the host. Recent fixtures between these two suggest a very tough game is in store, especially when the Cottagers have home advantage.
Boxing Day for the Red Devils means Wigan make the short journey to Manchester as second from top meets second from bottom in the league. A horrific run of form for the away side stopped last weekend when they beat Sunderland at the death to garner a badly-needed win. However Roberto Martinez’ side are still two points stranded away from safety.
The only man that the Latics have injured for the encounter is substitute goalkeeper, Chris Kirkland. Although the visitors have been largely poor this season, the sight of themselves in the last three as they enter in 2012 will ensure they fight for their lives to stay in the Premier league and they may start that battle at Old Trafford.
To wrap up 2011′s footballing events at Old Trafford, Sir Alex Ferguson’s team host Blackburn Rovers on New Year’s Eve, the same day as the manager’s milestone 70th birthday also. Steven Kean’s Lancashire club are rooted to the bottom of the table, four points adrift of safety.
Vince Grella is the only certain absentee for the visitors as the likes of Christopher Samba, Ryan Nelsen and Martin Olsson are expected to return to the team during the month. The Rovers have been nothing short of abysmal this season and it looks very unlikely that they will be able to claim anything from this game.
