3. Wayne Rooney vs Steven N’Zonzi
Manchester United’s injury crisis has meant that their best striker has been deployed as a central midfielder in the last few games and that looks certain to continue against Stoke. With two strikers occupying the central defenders, the Englishman has excelled at making the late run into the box and scoring goals and will be hoping to inch closer to Andrew Cole, who is in second place on the list of players with most Premier League goals.
The man tasked with the responsibility of stopping him scoring and creating openings for his teammates, will be Steven N’Zonzi. With all eyes on Bojan, the Frenchman has quietly become the heartbeat of the Stoke side, receiving the ball in midfield and then moving forward with great purpose to create an opening in attack. On Thursday, he might have to take on a more defensive role to help his defense negate the threat of Rooney. If he is successful in doing that, Stoke will be able to end United’s unbeaten run and replicate their victory in the corresponding fixture last season.