Chelsea vs Manchester United Preview

The Premier League returns this Friday with Chelsea hosting Manchester United in their penultimate league game of the season.

Both sides have booked their place in European finals, but it is Chelsea who still have something to play for in the Premier League. The Blues are one of several teams still competing for a top five finish this season with two games to play.

Their fate remains in their own hands despite a 2-0 defeat to fellow European chasers Newcastle last week. The Blues still reside in the top five, and they can go some way to tightening their grip on Champions League qualification here ahead of a final-day showdown with top-five rivals Nottingham Forest.

First, Enzo Maresca’s men will be looking to extend their unbeaten home record in the Premier League in 2025 (W7, D2) when they welcome Manchester United to Stamford Bridge. The hosts won this fixture 4-3 last season with goals in the 100th and 101st minute to snatch victory at the death, yet that was their first success at Stamford Bridge against United since November 2017 (D4, L3).

Meanwhile, while Chelsea still have a lot to play for in the remaining two games, Manchester United have nothing at stake in the Premier League, given their league position. But the Red Devils will be hoping to play their part in the race for Europe next season, given that their final two matches come against Chelsea and Aston Villa.

A 2-0 defeat to West Ham last week stretched the Red Devils’ winless run to a joint-club record seven Premier League matches (D2, L5), with boss Ruben Amorim confessing he’s “embarrassed” by his miserable record in the competition (W6, D6, L13).

Half of those wins came against the bottom three sides, and things aren’t guaranteed to get better here, considering that the visitors have won just three of their last 22 away league matches in London (D5, L14). That includes a 4-3 loss to Brentford in their last away game, in which United fielded a weakened side.

The same could be expected here given that this will be their final fixture before their season-defining Europa League final against Tottenham next week.

Other fixtures taking place this week in the Premier League Fixtures:

Premier League Table