PREVIEW: DERBY COUNTY V MANCHESTER UNITED

 

How to follow the match: Friday’s match will kick off at 19:55 GMT and will be broadcast live on BBC One in the UK. You can also follow it via ManUtd.com's live blog and the club's official Twitter account @ManUtd. MUTV's Match Day Live programme begins at 19:00 GMT and the club's official channel will show the game in full on Saturday at 17:00 GMT.

Scene-setter: United head into this clash on the back of a first defeat in six games, at the hands of Southampton last weekend. With a potential Wembley cup final just five wins away, victory over promotion-chasing Derby would serve as a welcome boost for Louis van Gaal's side.

Form guide: Derby currently sit fifth in the Championship table, six points adrift of the automatic promotion slots, after failing to win any of their last five league games. The Rams lost 4-1 at Burnley on Monday night, a result which Paul Clement's side will be eager to atone for against United. Meanwhile, defeat to Southampton leaves the Reds fifth in the Barclays Premier League standings, just outside the Champions League places.

Head-to-head: Friday's match will be the 104th meeting between the sides, the most recent of which resulted in the Reds progressing to the sixth round of the FA Cup with a comfortable 4-1 win in 2008/09. Our only defeat to Derby in the Premier League era came earlier that season, a 1-0 loss in the League Cup. United have a favourable record against the Rams, coming out on top in 44 per cent of the previous meetings, and will be favourites again this time around. 

Latest team news: Louis van Gaal is expected to give an update on Matteo Darmian in his pre-match press conference, after the defender was forced off against Southampton. It is still unclear whether or not injured quartet Phil Jones, Marcos Rojo, Michael Carrick and Bastian Schweinsteiger are fit to return. Ashley Young, Antonio Valencia and Luke Shaw remain long-term absentees.

View from the dressing room: "We’ve got to go again on Friday and the midweek afterwards as well [at home to Stoke City in the league]. The players need to pick ourselves up as we’re the only ones who can turn this thing around." - Chris Smalling.

View from the opposition: "Manchester United have got the quality to turn their situation at any moment. We are going to have be at our absolute best." - Paul Clement

Danger men: Derby boast a wealth of attacking talent, and added to their frontline earlier this month with the signing of Reading striker Nick Blackman, who is among the top scorers in the second tier. He joins former Aston Villa duo Darren Bent and Andreas Weimann in the Rams ranks, as well as powerful forward Chris Martin, who will surely be a handful for the United defence if he starts on Friday.

Betting: Club partners Marathon Bet have priced United as favourites to win the game at 1/1 and hosts Derby at 63/20, with the draw at 13/5. You can also back the Reds to win by more than one goal at odds of 101/50. 

Referee: Cheshire official Anthony Taylor takes charge of a United match for the third time this season after being in the middle for the away league defeats at Arsenal in October and Bournemouth in December.

Rivals watch: United's neighbours Manchester City face a tricky trip to last year's finalists Aston Villa, while the other all-Premier League affairs have Crystal Palace taking on Stoke while West Ham travel to Liverpool in the late kick-off. On Sunday, both Everton and Chelsea face trips to lower league opposition, as they play Carlisle and MK Dons respectively.