Manchester United will be looking to make it two wins out of two in the Champions League when they welcome Bundesliga powerhouses RB Leipzig to Old Trafford for Wednesday's mouthwatering clash.
Similarly, the visitors also head into the match looking to maintain their 100% start following a 2-0 victory over Istanbul Basaksehir last week.
Match preview
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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer continues to divide opinion amongst the United fanbase, but there is no denying the fact that the Norwegian got it spot on against perennial French champions Paris Saint-Germain last week.
Indeed, the Red Devils claimed all three points at the Parc des Princes thanks to goals from Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford either side of an own goal from Anthony Martial, although United were unable to follow up that success in the league when they welcomed Chelsea to Old Trafford.
Solskjaer's men were facing a side who have become renowned for their leaky defence in recent times, but a blinder from Blues goalkeeper Edouard Mendy saw Chelsea walk away with a point from that encounter, with Edinson Cavani going closest for United just seconds after coming on for his debut.
However, there is certainly a renewed sense of optimism at United since that 6-1 thrashing at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur, with the Red Devils now boasting five wins from their last seven in all competitions, but Solskjaer must now traverse a challenging run of fixtures against Leipzig, Arsenal, Istanbul Basaksehir and Everton before the international break.
A victory against Leipzig would certainly put the Red Devils in a strong early position to finish in the top two, as well as doing wonders for the confidence of the United faithful, but the Bundesliga side will no doubt have similar aspirations of a crucial victory on Wednesday evening.
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Leipzig have not suffered defeat in any competition since their 3-0 loss to PSG in last season's Champions League semi-finals, and Julian Nagelsmann's side will certainly be motivated to go one better this time around.
That will be much easier said than done, however - especially given the quality of teams in Group H - but Leipzig travel to Old Trafford having picked up six wins from their last seven across all competitions, including four victories on the bounce.
The early leaders in the Bundesliga made no mistake in their opening Champions League game of the 2020-21 season as a double from Manchester City loanee Angelino saw Leipzig record a convincing 2-0 victory over Istanbul Basaksehir last Tuesday.
Nagelsmann's men have since continued their stellar form in the Bundesliga with a 2-1 victory over Hertha Berlin at the weekend, although Leipzig were indebted to a late Marcel Sabitzer penalty after Dayot Upamecano initially levelled the scores following Jhon Cordoba's opener.
Wednesday's game will be the first time that United and Leipzig have faced off, and the Bundesliga side did not even exist when United last lifted the Champions League in 2008.
Manchester United Champions League form: W
Manchester United form (all competitions): WWLWWD
RB Leipzig Champions League form: W
RB Leipzig form (all competitions): WDWWWW
Team News
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Solskjaer could very well opt for the three-man defence which worked wonders against PSG, which should see Axel Tuanzebe come back into the fold following his stellar performance against the French champions, with Harry Maguire due a rest.
The United manager may be reluctant to take unnecessary risks over the fitness of Fernandes and Rashford before the visit of Arsenal, which may see summer arrivals Cavani and Donny van de Beek line up in the starting XI, while Martial is serving a domestic suspension but is available here.
There is plenty of competition for places in United's midfield, with Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic both waiting in the wings for their chance to shine, but Fred and Scott McTominay are in line to pair up once again.
Eric Bailly, Jesse Lingard and Phil Jones are all on the treatment table for the hosts.
However, Leipzig are not so lucky on the injury front as Nagelsmann's defence has been decimated by the losses of Marcel Halstenberg, Lukas Klostermann and Nordi Mukiele - the latter of whom was forced off in the weekend victory over Hertha.
Benjamin Henrichs is likely to fill the void on the right-hand side of defence in Mukiele's absence, while Sabitzer should be fit enough to make the starting XI for this one.
However, Nagelsmann is rather short of options in midfield as Konrad Laimer, Amadou Haidara and Tyler Adams are all out.
Manchester United possible starting lineup:
De Gea; Tuanzebe, Lindelof, Shaw; Wan-Bissaka, Fred, McTominay, Telles; Van de Beek; Cavani, Martial
RB Leipzig possible starting lineup:
Gulacsi; Henrichs, Upamecano, Konate, Angelino; Kampl, Nkunku; Sabitzer, Olmo, Forsberg; Poulsen
We say: Manchester United 2-2 RB Leipzig
Wednesday's clash has all the makings of a truly entertaining spectacle between two sides who boast a plethora of talent at both ends of the pitch. It seems incredible to think that one of United or Leipzig may not qualify for the knockout stages with PSG also in the group. Both teams will be desperate to take the spoils in this one, and with rotation likely on both ends, we think both sides will come away with a point.
Top betting tip
Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a double chance bet on a home win or an away win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home/Away:curl
Ben Knapton
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Manchester United win with a probability of 50.34%. A draw had a probability of 27.6% and a win for RB Leipzig had a probability of 22.06%.
The most likely scoreline for a Manchester United win was 1-0 with a probability of 15.35%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (10.63%) and 2-1 (8.66%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.5%), while for a RB Leipzig win it was 0-1 (9.03%). The actual scoreline of 5-0 was predicted with a 0.5% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Manchester United would win this match.
