Porto vs Manchester United: Match Preview, Odds & Prediction

Manchester United will play Porto, a Portuguese powerhouse, at the Estadio do Dragao on Thursday night in their second Europa League match of the new season. The Red Devils will be looking to get back on track after suffering a humiliating Premier League loss.

While Porto cruised to a 4-0 Primeira Liga victory against Arouca, the Red Devils were soundly defeated 3-0 at home by Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

Previous Matches and Head-to-head

United have gotten off to a terrible start in the Premier League, losing three of their first six games and collecting just seven points. Last weekend, they suffered a humiliating three-goal loss to Spurs, which former defender Gary Neville deemed as "disgusting" and "one of the worst performances" by a Red Devils squad playing under Erik ten Hag.

Man Utd's worst moment came with 11 players on the field when Tottenham sliced through their middle like butter, and a slew of old mistakes reappeared; the somewhat contentious dismissal of Bruno Fernandes did not improve matters.

Ten Hag, who has lost ten games in charge of Manchester United by three goals or more, including two this season alone, is at a loss for reasons why his team has failed. The club has spent over £600 million on new players, and the Dutchman recruited or promoted 12 of the 16 players who played against Spurs.

According to sources, ten Hag is expected to continue in his current role for Man United's upcoming away matches against Porto and Aston Villa before the international break. The club's leadership has no imminent plans to replace him as manager. There is a lot of pressure on the 54-year-old, who signed a new two-year contract just in July, so things might become ugly if performance picks up later.

Even though they could not beat Spurs, Manchester United will confidently head to Porto on Thursday after going undefeated in their twelve European encounters against Portuguese clubs. Their opening Europa League match was a 1-1 home draw with FC Twente.

In a 2009 Champions League match at the Estadio do Dragao, the Red Devils prevailed over Porto 1-0 thanks to a legendary goal from Cristiano Ronaldo, who struck 40 yards out. With a victory on Thursday, United will get United off to a good start in the Europa League, giving Ten Hag more time to prepare for their third encounter against Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce.

Porto has gotten off to a far better start than Manchester United in their domestic campaign. They have won six of their first seven Primeira Liga matches, defeating leaders and defending champions Sporting Lisbon 2-0 at the end of August. Their aggregate score is 16-1.

Samu Omorodion, Nico Gonzalez, Galeno, and Deniz Gul scored in the second half to give Porto a 4-0 home win over 10-man Arouca on Sunday. The result helped Porto solidify their position as the league's runner-up.

Despite his team's slow start in Europe, new head coach Vitor Bruno was effusive in his appreciation of the second-half performance. He expressed optimism that they will carry their solid domestic play into the competition. Bruno succeeded Sergio Conceicao in the summer.

Last week, in their first Europa League match, Porto was shocked to lose 3-2 away to Bodo/Glimt of Norway, even though they played most of the second half with a substitute; the Dragons have won just once in their previous seven games in Europe's second-tier club competition.

Out of eight meetings between the two teams in Europe, Porto has only triumphed twice against United, in 1977 (a 4-0 home victory in the European Cup Winners' Cup) and 2004 (a 2-1 victory in the Champions League quarterfinals en way to the tournament's title).

Porto x Manchester United Team News

Otavio is questionable after missing the previous three games with a muscular problem. Porto will be without long-term absentees Ivan Marcano and Zaidu Sanusi, who have both suffered anterior cruciate ligament injuries.

Nevertheless, the Dragons received a boost last weekend when Fabio Vieira, a midfielder on loan from Arsenal, returned to the field and played a substitute role for the previous 20 minutes. Since his summer homecoming, Thursday might be Vieira's first start for the club.

Wingers Pepe and Galeno will likely support Omorodion in the attack after scoring in his Europa League debut last time out. Omorodion was heavily linked with Chelsea in the summer before joining Porto.

Regarding Manchester United, Leny Yoro (foot) and Luke Shaw (calf) are still injured. At the same time, Mason Mount (head), Kobbie Mainoo (muscle), Harry Maguire (knock), and Tyrell Malacia (knee) are all questionable. As the first half ended against Spurs, Mainoo was substituted off due to his injury.

Ugarte and Casemiro, formerly of Porto, might fill in for Mainoo in midfield if the latter is ruled out with an injury. Fernandes, captain, despite being benched in Sunday's Premier League match, can keep his starting spot.

Because United hasn't been particularly dangerous in the final third, Rasmus Hojlund has taken Joshua Zirkzee's starting spot. At the same time, Amad Diallo and Antony will keep fighting with Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford for side starts.

Our Predictions

Full-time draw @ 3.40 on Sky247.ng

On Thursday, Ten Hag will be hoping for a response from his Manchester United players. However, success against Porto is far from assured, as they have only lost one of their previous 22 home matches (W18, D3) across all competitions.

Twenty-three goals have been scored in the Red Devils' previous four European away games, with nine goals scored for and fourteen against. During this run, they have only managed to secure one victory. Ten Hag and company may soon be in for another rough road journey, and this time, they might have to settle for a share of the spoils.

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