Real Madrid are at the top of the pile, while Manchester United are playing catch-up but there is no denying that Jose Mourinho’s side have made excellent progress over the past season. United Europa League victory ensured that their season was viewed as a success; they are back where they belong, playing against Europe’s elite sides in the Champions League.
Their Uefa Super Cup match against the superior Real Madrid will be a measure of just how far they have come. Madrid won last season’s Champions League and are the continent’s best team.
UEFA Super Cup – Final – Thuesday 8th August 2017 – 7:45 pm
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Draw Best Odd of: 12/5 at Ladbrokes |
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Real Madrid
Manchester UnitedThis is a game that will demonstrate just how far United have to go before they are viewed with the same gaze.
Manchester United’s form
United finished last season in sixth place and never really looked like a side that were going to qualify for the Champions League through league form. However, their ability to progress through the cup competitions was a saving grace.
United picked off the League Cup, before taking European football’s secondary competition, the Europa League. Their victory in the final against Dutch giants Ajax demonstrated a side that is on an upward trajectory.
Their preseason form is another indicator of this, as their new signings have bedded into the club well. This year they will be hoping to compete on all-fronts, starting with the Uefa Super Cup.
Real Madrid form
Madrid is Europe’s best team and nobody can doubt the stellar work that Zinedine Zidane has done to get them to this level. He has led Los Blancos to a level that they haven’t reached for quite a while.
His side of superstars not only won the Champions League against an excellent Juventus team, they also defeated their old rivals Barcelona in the race for the La Liga title. This title was helped in no small part by the inspirational Cristiano Ronaldo. He scored 25 league goals for Real during the 2016/17 season.
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Romelu Lukaku moved to United in search of top-level football, so it will be an interesting side-plot seeing how he copes against the likes of Real Madrid. He has often been accused of only performing against the poorer sides.
United’s other new signing, Victor Lindelof, performs. He is a player that is used to playing in the top-flight in Portugal. This is a level lower than Manchester United perform at, so many will be questioning his ability to step-up to the plate.
Madrid has made plenty of new signings too. The highest profile of which has been Theo Hernandez. The left-back has moved from city rivals, Atletico, for an estimated fee of €30m.
There is no doubt that he is a good player, but this is a huge fee for a full-back.
Betting tips
United are team that are improving, but Real Madrid are already at the level the English side aspire to reach. Zidane has created a team that is world class and that are very hard to beat. We don’t think United has the skills to do it, so we are putting our money on a Real Madrid win.
They are 5/6 with Ladbrokes to win the game. This is a team that has been picking up trophies for fun in recent years and we certainly wouldn’t be surprised to see them pick up another here.
Ronaldo has proved in the past that he loves playing United, so backing his side to win by more than one goal at a price of 2/1 with Bet 365 could be the gamble of the game.