Preview: Manchester United vs. Juventus | Ronaldo returns to Old Trafford

The news of Ronaldo returning to the Old Trafford is on trending than the clash between Manchester United and Juventus. In the Group H, Juventus leads the table with 2 wins while Manchester United are at second with a win and a draw after the end of second round. Juventus are having a great season with a win after win but they had a bad weekend as Genoa held them at home. This was a first point dropped by Juventus in the league. On other hands, Manchester United are gathering some confidence after series of poor results. They were left frustrated at Stamford Bridge as Barkley got a goal in the last minute to deny them win against Chelsea.

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Juventus is the most powerful force in Serie A and there is not stopping to them. The one and only target for Juventus is to win the Champions League. They reached to two Champions League finals in last 4 years but failed to win it. They missed something in their squad, a world class player that can score goals in a big stage and bring the CL to Turin. Who can do it better than Ronaldo, thus they signed 5 times Ballon d'Or winner Ronaldo in this summer.

Despite his age, Ronaldo still looks like the player he was back in his day at Old Trafford, even better with all his experience. Across top five European leagues, he registered the 400th goal this Saturday, the first player to achieve this feat. For Juventus, he already got 5 goals and 5 assists this season.

Not only, Ronaldo, but Juventus is also well decorated with many star players. Up front, Ronaldo will be supported by Mario Mandzukic and Paulo Dybala. Paulo Dybala missed the game on Saturday because of some injury concern but he is believed to make a return at Old Trafford. Miralem Pjanic and Matuidi run the show in midfield. And the wall of Chiellini, Bonucci, Cancelo, and Sandro is the hardest to break. They will miss the Buffon factor this season but Szczesny has equally been impressive for Juventus.

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Manchester United fan is more excited about Ronaldo's return to Old Trafford than the match. It might also be due to the fact that there is nothing to get excited about from their team. Manchester United are not in great form although they had picked a win against Newcastle before the break and got a point from Stamford Bridge. They were unlucky not to register a win against Chelsea. But their game has not been impressive at all. The first half against both Newcastle and Chelsea were terrible and no United fans will like to remember it. But they had an impressive outing in last 30 minutes against Newcastle and second half against Chelsea. If they want to have any chance against Juventus, they need to put their second-half display from the first minute till the end.

The only positive in United front line is a resurgence of Anthony Martial who got 3 goals in last 2 matches. He got 2 goals against the Chelsea defense. Lukaku and Rashford did well during the International break but failed to impress for the club. And for Pogba, he was an architect of the impressive display in the second half but he had a frustrating first half. He was in fault for the first goal and showed his frustration in the pitch. He needs to put in and run the midfield from the start for Manchester United.

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United defensively has been very poor this season. They don't have proper center back, and de Gea can't put match-winning display every now and then. Also, de Gea hasn't been as magical as he used to be. But they worked together to control Hazard and Jorginho which was their aim and for Mourinho. Mourinho might find a way to put impressive defensive display against Juventus with likes of Smalling and Lindelof and that is what he is known for.

It is hard for Manchester United to win this given their form and the form of Juventus. But this match is going to be a very important match if they want to progress to the next round in the Champions League. A win against Juventus will almost secure the spot for the Round of 16. If they fail here, they will be playing Juventus away next and its impossible to get anything there. If they don't get anything at Old Trafford, United will see themselves moving below Valencia next month, and in a difficult scenario to qualify.

Being a United fan, what will happen is not important, it is more important what I would like to see. I want United to win this one at home and move a step ahead to the round of 16. Its a bit tricky but I am hopeful, Mourinho and team will give their best to get something out of this after seeing them against Chelsea. And it will be a pleasure to see Ronaldo again in Old Trafford.

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