Manchester United return to Premier League action at Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon when they welcome Tottenham Hotspur. United are unbeaten in their last four matches in all competitions, drawing the last two, which is not great but is better than the two match losing streak before.

United need to start getting results in the Premier League to better their league position. United were sat in 11th place with Spurs sitting a place about in 10th – sharing the same number of points – seven. Erik ten Hag will need to get the better of Spurs this weekend.

Here is the potential lineup we predict Ten Hag will start

Goalkeeper: Onana

Onana has been good for United this season and the better defenders at the club will make it much better once the team has gelled together and have come up to speed with the tactics at United. Onana is a competent goalkeeper and will be seeking to show his ability in goal this season.

Defenders: Mazraoui, De Ligt, Martinez, Dalot

United’s defence has improved massively this season with the new arrivals and it will be great for the club to get everything solved with the defensive issues of the past few seasons. United do have problems right now with the fullback positions because of injury, leaving United weak there.

I would expect both Noussair Mazraoui and Diogo Dalot to both start against Spurs on Sunday. Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia being back would add some strength to the defence, but that is not going to happen until some point next month. Mazraoui and Dalot will be the best options against Spurs.

In the centre of the defence, Matthijs de Ligt and Lisandro Martinez should be starting again as at the moment they are the best players in those positions. When Leny Joro comes back, there will be a challenge to get the two starting places. United have Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans also.

Midfield: Ugarte, Mainoo

United’s midfield has seen some improvement this summer, which has always been needed at the club. The signing of Manuel Ugarte has given United two defensive type midfielders to rotate with Casemiro the other, who is in the twilight of his career at the Old Trafford club.

Against Spurs, Ugarte and Kobbie Mainoo could make a good midfield partnership, which could see United get the better of Spurs in the midfield. Having the liked of Christian Eriksen and Casemiro on the bench could also be good for United, giving other options should they be needed.

Mainoo has gone from strength to strength since he came into the first team from the academy and has given some of his former teammates in the academy a way of breaking through into the first team, which is what many of them will dream of and only few of them will achieve consistently.

Attacking Midfield: Garnacho, Fernandes, Rashford

United’s attacking midfield area is stocked with talent but the solution to the problems of not being able to score consistently need to be found. United seem to rotate a lot in these positions, which is what is expected with a number of options at the club – this is good team management.

However, against Spurs, Alejandro Garnacho should be starting on the right-wing for United as he can offer something that could be devastating to the Spurs defence. Having Bruno Fernandes in the centre of this area will be positive to get the better of the North London club, which is important.

Marcus Rashford has been in good form in the run up to this match, so he should start on his favoured left-wing, which is where he has played some of his best football for the Old Trafford club. If these players gel and do what they do best, United will be a handful for Spurs but it needs to work.

Forward: Zirkzee

Joshua Zirkzee has been a great player for United since signing for the club in the summer. He offers something for United that they did not have previously, which gives insight into why the club signed him from Bologna. Having him and Rasmus Hojlund fit and ready will be great this season.

This season, Zirkzee has already scored one goal and has struggled to add more to his total. The advantages of that will hopefully become apparent in the not too distant future as I think he has begun to establish himself at United and in the Premier League. I get excited about Zirkzee.

It’s fortunate that Hojlund is the only striker for United sitting on the bench. In his first season at Old Trafford, the Danish international demonstrated his good ball-handling skills and goal-scoring abilities. He too will be a threat once he’s in peak condition.