Former Celtic star Chris Sutton has predicted Chelsea will get a narrow victory over Manchester United in their upcoming Premier League meeting at Old Trafford.
Despite spending heavily over the summer, Man United have struggled to make the scoreboard tick. Scoring four points from as many matches, the Red Devils are 14th in the Premier League rankings. They have suffered two defeats, played out a draw, and won one match.
Due to their poor showings, Manchester United’s relegation odds are shorter than Bournemouth.
Headers against Chelsea: a novel by @Casemiro 💥📕 pic.twitter.com/M3QHRnAer7
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) September 17, 2025
Chelsea, meanwhile, remain unbeaten in the English top flight. They are in fifth place in the rankings after amassing eight points from four matches. Enzo Maresca’s side have claimed two wins and played out two draws.
The Blues, however, are coming into Saturday’s match on the back of a defeat. They fell to a 3-1 loss at the Allianz Arena in their Champions League opener against Bayern Munich on Wednesday.
Chris Sutton Prediction: Pundit Expects Man United Loss vs Chelsea
While making his prediction for Man United vs Chelsea, Chris Sutton warned Ruben Amorim that fans now expected results from him.
Sutton wrote in his BBC column:
“I backed Ruben Amorim last season when he stuck to his system, because he had not had the chance to bring his own players in. But he has had that chance now, and they still can’t get results.
“United are arguably the biggest club in the world with a wonderful history of winning things, especially in the Premier League. The onus on them is not just to win every week, but to do it in a certain way – with panache, playing great attacking football.”
Ruben Amorim's win percentage is the worst of any permanent Manchester United manager since World War II 😬 pic.twitter.com/dlcPGgDSPW
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 15, 2025
He continued:
“The system Amorim plays, in his 3-4-3 formation, is OK if you are winning or playing scintillating football but at the moment United are doing neither. They have had a fair bit of possession in some of their games, but what are they doing with it?
“I really like Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha, but eventually United will need to win games, to give their fans something to cling on to. As Scholes said, their ambition at the moment is just to get into the top half. I am sorry but Amorim needs to give their supporters a bit more than that.”
Unless the Man Utd boss manages to turn it around quickly, the club could look for a replacement. Unai Emery is 4/1 with football betting sites to become the next Manchester United manager.
Sutton Expects Cole Palmer to Win it for Chelsea
Without European football to congest their calendar, Man United should be fresher for the match on Sunday. Despite the advantage, Chris Sutton expects Chelsea to beat them, with him backing Cole Palmer to play a prominent role.
He added:
“Where United are fortunate is that they have had a week off since losing the derby, while Chelsea were beaten by Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday.
“It is a massive plus for United that they don’t have European football. You can’t moan about having less games – that should give them the physical advantage here.”
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) September 18, 2025
Sutton concluded by adding:
“Even so, how can you put together a case for United winning this game? I just can’t.
“Chelsea are not the finished article either, but they are playing some good stuff. They have also got Cole Palmer firing again, and he will make the difference.”
Chris Sutton’s Score Prediction: Man United 1-2 Chelsea
