LONDON (Sporting Alert) — Live text commentary and live score updates from the English Premier League game between West Ham United and Manchester United at Upton Park.
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Man United manager Louis van Gaal has named Wayne Rooney, Adnan Januzaj, Angel di Maria, Robin van Persie and Falcao all in his starting lineup, as the Red Devils look to move back into third-place in the league table standings.
Adnan Januzaj, who missed the last game with a minor injury will play in an advanced role with Di Maria in support of Falcao and Van Persie, with captain Rooney and Daley Blind playing in midfield.
In what is expected to be a back-four defensive line, Antonio Valencia, Phil Jones, Marcos Rojo and Luke Shaw will play in front of David de Gea.
Amongst the substitutes for the visitors are Juan Mata, Chris Smalling, Ander Herrera, Marouane Fellaini and James Wilson.
Meanwhile, for West Ham United, there is no Andy Carroll, as the England forward is out injured. Diafra Sakho has been named in the starting lineup in the English Premier League for the first time since the New Year’s Day fixture.
Enner Valencia will partner Sakho, with Cheikhou Kouyate, Mark Noble, Stewart Downing, Kevin Nolan, Alex Song and James Tomkins all starting as well for the Hammers.
The home side’s substitute bench includes the likes of Matthew Jarvis, Joey O’Brien and Carlton Cole.
Manchester United will move back into the top three with a win on Sunday, while a defeat would see them staying fourth behind leaders Chelsea, Manchester City and Southampton.
There have been suggestions that Van Gaal needs to start playing Rooney in a more attacking position to get the best out of him, but the Man United manager says the club skipper has never complained about having to play in midfield.
“I don’t think that he has ever complained about where he has to play,” he said on Sunday. “I also thinks he likes playing in midfield because he’s on the ball more often, so he’s enjoying it.”
It will be interested see the production of Januzaj in an advanced position on Sunday, after making his feelings well-known to the manager last week that he wasn’t a defender and feels out-of-place playing as a wing-back.
West Ham XI: Adrian, Jenkinson, Tomkins, Kouyate, Cresswell, Song, Noble, Nolan, Downing, Sakho, Valencia. Subs: Jaaskelainen, O’Brien, Oxford, Amalfitano, Jarvis, Cole, Lee.
Man Utd XI: De Gea, Valencia, Jones, Rojo, Shaw, Blind, Rooney, Di Maria, Januzaj, Van Persie, Falcao. Subs: Valdes, McNair, Smalling, Herrera, Mata, Fellaini, Wilson.
