Premier League

Man Utd vs Newcastle prediction

Cristiano Ronaldo is set to make his second Manchester United debut on Saturday as Newcastle United are the visitors to Old Trafford. The global superstar will be representing the Red Devils again for the first time since 2009.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have made an inconsistent start to the season – hammering Leeds 5-1 before drawing 1-1 at Southampton and relying on an 80th minute winner versus Wolverhampton Wanderers after the hosts had spurned several good opportunities.

Newcastle have also drawn with Southampton this season, but lost their other two games convincingly – against West Ham United and Aston Villa.

Steve Bruce as a horrendous record versus his former club and his team are genuine relegation contenders this season (we said they wouldn’t be among them for each of the previous two seasons).

Ronaldo’s return, United’s attack, which includes Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford, Mason Greenwood and Bruno Fernandes, versus a Newcastle defence that has conceded eight goals in their first three games – all points to a comprehensive home victory in this one.

International breaks can lead to unpredictable results in the first match back, but with United’s star mostly playing in Europe, I don’t see any problems this weekend. Just a shame the game is live on British telelvision.

Best bet: Manchester United to win -1.5 goals is 1.525 with Bet365
Dead cert: Man Utd to win is 1.23 with Smarkets