v. How to follow the match: Wednesday's Barclays Premier League encounter at Old Trafford will kick off at 20:00 BST. It will not be broadcast live in the UK but, as ever, fans can follow the action via ManUtd.com's live match blog and the club's official Twitter account @ManUtd. MUTV's preview showMatch Day Live begins at 19:00 BST and is followed by live radio commentary on the channel. Scene-setter: The race for the Barclays Premier League top four is heading towards its climax and Manchester United are four points away from those UEFA Champions League qualification places, with just five games left to play. Victory against Crystal Palace is required and would also boost Louis van Gaal's men ahead of Saturday's Emirates FA Cup semi-final at Wembley, although the Eagles will be motivated opponents because they are yet to cement their top-flight status. Form guide: United bounced back from the 3-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur by securing a morale-boosting 2-1 win at West Ham in the FA Cup sixth round, before following that up with a gritty 1-0 win over Aston Villa. The Reds have notably not lost any of the 13 previous Premier League matches against Palace, earning 10 wins and three draws in a run that stretches back to September 1992. Despite being 16th in the table, Alan Pardew’s team are unbeaten in four straight matches in April. However, their recent 1-0 win against Norwich City remains their only top-flight victory in 2016. Last meeting: Back on 31 October, Crystal Palace held United to a frustrating 0-0 draw and that was the Reds' third consecutive goalless match in all competitions. “We did not keep the ball,” said van Gaal. “That's a very important factor and because of that we didn't create too many chances.” Latest team news: Van Gaal made changes for the win over Villa by resting Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard, with Wayne Rooney and Memphis coming in, so it will be interesting to see which of those four will start on Wednesday night. The boss may also be tempted to rotate again, with the FA Cup semi-final against Everton just four days away. Luke Shaw, Adnan Januzaj, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Will Keane could be the only absentees as Ander Herrera is in line to return to the squad. Palace are likely to be without Yannick Bolasie, Scott Dann, Joel Ward and Joe Ledley but James McArthur will make his return from injury. View from the dressing room: “We now have Crystal Palace where hopefully we can win again and then we have the semi-final in the FA Cup. That gives us two very clear aims - to win, if we can, every game in the Premier League to get Champions League football, and then to win the FA Cup, which the club has not won for a few years. We are fully focused on both tasks.” – Juan Mata Opposition manager: Palace boss Alan Pardew hopes his team's troubles are behind them following a run of positive results, though he would like to pick up more wins in 2016. “We weren't expecting that run [of defeats] to go on as long as it went on,” he explained earlier this month. “The first half of this season we got it right, but the second we haven't. We need to address that. The confidence levels, hopefully, have gone up, and our nervousness has disappeared.” Danger man: Things didn’t work out for Wilfried Zaha at United but the 23-year-old has impressed since rejoining Palace. A creator of goals, he has also scored five himself in 40 appearances across all competitions and Chris Smalling admits he is expecting a tricky game against his old team-mate. “Crystal Palace are known for having direct and pacey wingers who like to put a lot of balls into the box,” he explained to MUTV ahead of the game. “They play exactly to Wilf’s strengths and he's been able to play in every game. He didn't get that with us but at Palace he's been able to show his ability, week in and week out, in the Premier League.” Betting: Official partner Marathonbet has priced United as clear favourites to win at odds of 14/15, with Palace at 33/10 and the draw at 61/10. You can also back young Marcus Rashford to score the first or last goal at 39/10. Visit their website via manutd.com/bet for more odds and offers. Referee: Lancashire-based official Lee Mason will take charge of Wednesday's game at Old Trafford. It will be his 29th match of the season and United fans may remember him from the Capital One Cup clash with Middlesbrough. In total, he has dished out 79 yellow cards and three red cards this term.
I know its not the best match thread but I'm under a time crunch. I'm going on vacation tomorrow so this is as good as it gets. I also won't be able to do the thread for this weekend either so Nimma or RnN is going to have to handle it.
Palace seem to be resting some of their players in advance of their FA Cup tie on Sunday. We will struggle like we did against Villa but still come out with a 1-0 win. AP: Yala's struggling a little, Ward will miss tomorrow's game, Dann and Ledley have knocks. They'll make Sunday, not Man United.— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) April 19, 2016
Our top 4 chances should be gone, but City and Arsenal continue to give us a lifeline. We should take it.
Squad for today's game: David de Gea, Sergio Romero, Timothy Fosu-Mensah, Matteo Darmian, Chris Smalling, Daley Blind, Marcos Rojo, Marouane Fellaini, Morgan Schneiderlin, Juan Mata, Jesse Lingard, Memphis, Ashley Young, Marcus Rashford, Wayne Rooney, Anthony Martial, Antonio Valencia, Ander Herrera
Hey guys, seeing as how the game is not going to be televised, though I'd share that you can stream the game via rojadirecta.me I won't be able to watch the game because of work
Thanks for always posting match threads for us. It's great how you're always able to find the tv networks that air out games.
Channels: MUTV(UK), Directv(US), NBC Deportes En Vivo Extra(US), NBC Sports Live Extra(US), TSN4(Canada)
I honestly don't know what to make of this? Is that Schneiderlin in a Singe Pivot?? United: De Gea, Valencia, Smalling, Blind, Darmian, Lingard, Schneiderlin, Mata, Rooney, Martial, Rashford #mufc pic.twitter.com/nHvb1w9H7o— Manchester United (@ManUtd) April 20, 2016
It looks like it is and like Van Gaal is clearly going for a more attacking side and for the win. In terms of the formation, there shouldn't much complaints, for a change.
Or alternatively he sees the clear picture and understand that Big Maroune is being 'rested' for the FA Cup game which is pathetic.
Excuse the formatting but I think its like this in a 4-1-2-1-2 DDG Valencia--Mike--Blind---Darmian -----------Schneiderlin-------- -------Mata-------Lingard------ --------------Rooney------------ Rashford------------Martial
Just hoping that it will work and yield a football that is eye pleasing and more importantly produces some goals. A victory today would be huge as it would close down the gap to both Arsenal and City and provide a nice confidence boost ahead of Wembley this w/e.
Here is how I think we'll lineup: DDG Valencia Smalling Blind Darmian ----Schneiderlin------ --------Rooney--------- Mata----Lingard----Martial -----------Rashford---------- Rooney in the middle.