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A team that are at their best away from home face a team in danger of their worst home run in over 50 years. By all accounts Manchester United have little to fear from their trip to Sheffield United yet the Premier League is rarely a competition that obeys the script.

Here's how you can watch the match and what to know:

Viewing information

  • Date: Thursday, Dec. 17
  • Time: 3:00 p.m. ET
  • Location: Bramall Lane -- Sheffield, United Kingdom
  • TV: NBCSN
  • Live stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
  • Odds: Sheffield United +650; Draw +340; Manchester United -225 (via William Hill Sportsbook) 

Storylines

Sheffield United: Is relegation already inevitable for Chris Wilder's side? Only four teams in the history of English league football have had just one point after 12 league games, they are already eight points adrift at the bottom of the table and to reach the 35 point tally that was good enough to keep Aston Villa up last season they need to average far better than a draw a game at 1.3 points per match.

Wilder, the architect of the Blades' rise to the top flight, has admitted he is still trying to find the right solutions for a side that have particularly missed Jack O'Connell, whose overlapping wide runs from central defence proved to be a headache for managers across English football. "This has been the most difficult period of my career," the Sheffield United boss said. "We are always searching, because we want to get the decisions right."

Manchester United: No Premier League team has a better road record than United's 5-0-0 with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side relishing the damage they can do on the counter-attack against sides who feel compelled to set the tempo. Yet against Thursday's opponents it is hard to see them being able to do what they do best.

Something different may be needed and Solskjaer will miss Edinson Cavani, who has returned to training but is not yet fit for action. That could open the door for Anthony Martial to start but his form has been indifferent at best of late.

Prediction

Manchester United may not have the sort of robust striker in Cavani who relishes this game and perhaps will not find it as easy going as the form book suggests they will. But they should have more than enough quality to get the three points. PICK: Manchester United (-225)