Paul Ince will be looking forward to the opportunity to pit his wits against former manager Sir Alex Ferguson. The Blackburn boss spent several successful seasons at Old Trafford, collecting numerous pieces of silverware under the watchful eye of Fergie, and the apprentice would like nothing better than to get one over the master.
With Manchester United having played in Europe this week, this could be an ideal time to play them, especially with Paul Scholes and Wayne Rooney missing. It’s therefore surprising to see Skybet offering 6/1 about Blackburn, especially considering Rovers have got a decent record against the Red Devils at Ewood Park. They’ve won two and drawn two of their last five encounters and are sure to get stuck in once again.
Others will point to the 4-0 mauling that Ince’s men had at the hands of Arsenal, and will choose to lump on United at 8/13 (Stan James). United nearly got the three points at Stamford Bridge and now have Cristiano Ronaldo back, who is sure to cause problems for the home defence. 888sport go 4/1 that the Portuguese forward opens the scoring, while Blue Square might get their fingers burnt by offering 11/10 that he scores at any point in the match.
It’s likely to be a scrappy affair, although the United defence is starting to look formidable, and the 1-0 scoreline (6/1 Ladbrokes) in their favour looks attractive. It may also be worth plumping for the 2-0 (Sporting Bet), if you expect them to win and keep a clean sheet. Alternatively, the Red Devils are 13/8 (Paddy Power) to win to nil. One player that they’ll have to keep quiet is Roque Santa Cruz, and the Paraguayan is 8/1 (bet365) to be the first name on the scoresheet.