FC Copenhagen vs Manchester United - Soccer Picks 11/8/23

Player to watch: Jordan Larsson was the man denied from the spot in the reverse fixture, but he was on the scoresheet at the weekend. Five of his six seasonal strikes have arrived before half-time, including two inside the opening minute!

Neestrup will be without William Clem (foot), Davit Khocholava (injury), and Birger Meling (injury). Nicolai Boilesen (knee), Andreas Cornelius (thigh), and Mohamed Elyounoussi (injury) are questionable to feature on Wednesday.

Manchester United (Form and News)

Copenhagen’s record will not offer any encouragement to visiting Manchester United, who’ve won just one of their last seven away matches in the UCL (D2, L4). They’re also the only English side to ever lose to Copenhagen - a 1-0 defeat on this ground in November 2006! This Red Devils outfit looks far more vulnerable than the one that went down that day, although a last-gasp Bruno Fernandes winner to see off Fulham on Saturday at least relieved some of the pressure on manager Erik ten Hag.

The Dutchman is the joint-fastest in club history to reach 50 wins in charge of United, but a banner in the away end imploring the players to “play like you mean it” lays bare the scale of supporter unhappiness with the squad at present. Upsetting them further by dropping points here could be disastrous for their UCL campaign, as United enter Round 4 a point adrift of second-placed Galatasaray.

Hot stat: Seven of Man Utd’s eight wins this season have come by a single-goal margin.

Player to watch: After striking decisively against Fulham in his 200th appearance for the club, Fernandes will be looking to break a UCL scoring duck that stretches back nearly three years and ten appearances!

Ten Hag cannot count on Casemiro (hamstring), Amad Diallo (knee), Tyrell Malacia (muscle), Lisandro Martinez (foot), Jadon Sancho (suspended), and Luke Shaw (muscle).

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FC Copenhagen vs Manchester United H2H Record

Including United’s 1-0 win at Old Trafford, these rivals have met four times. The Red Devils won three, although one of those wins came in extra-time in the Europa League quarterfinals during the COVID-19 outbreak. Back then, only one match at a neutral venue was played in the knockout stages.

FC Copenhagen vs Manchester United Odds

FC Copenhagen are +380 underdogs in this one. A draw can be backed at +310, while you can bet on Manchester United to win at -122. For the goals, you can pick Over 2.5 at -135, or Under 2.5 at +132. When it comes to both teams to score, BTTS YES is at -139, while BTTS NO is at +130. Take a look at more Champions League betting odds here!

FC Copenhagen vs Manchester United Pick

Copenhagen were very unlucky two weeks ago at Old Trafford. The Lions created numerous chances, many of which were more serious than Manchester’s on the other end. They even had a penalty in the dying moments of the tilt, but Andre Onana came up with a magnificent save to hand United a minimal 1-0 victory.

This time around, I don’t think the Red Devils will be that lucky, and I am backing Copenhagen to find the back of the net. Copenhagen failed to score in just two of the last 19 matches in all competitions, that duel at Old Trafford included, and even bagged a goal against Bayern Munich, alongside two against Galatasaray in Turkey. I know that the Danish and English leagues cannot compare, but Copenhagen have the highest-scoring team in Superliga, and Manchester United’s leaky defense will be under a lot of pressure on Wednesday.

On the other hand, I expect the visitors to score as well. Not because they have a particularly prolific attack, but because FC Copenhagen allowed five goals in three Champions League matches, and conceded in each in the process.