A chance to end the year on a high... Absolutely! The Reds' recent upturn in form - which continued with Monday's 3-1 victory over Sunderland - means there's a real buzz around the club, and another three points here would be the perfect way to cap an excellent month. Jose Mourinho's side are unbeaten in 11 games in all competitions and boast the Premier League's form striker in Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who too is looking to keep his impressive run going. If Middlesbrough are beaten, United will be just one point behind top-six rivals Arsenal as we see in 2017 at midnight - the Gunners are not playing until New Year's Day.
Any early team news? Wayne Rooney missed the Sunderland match due to a slight thigh injury he felt in training on Christmas Day and may not recover in time to face Middlesbrough. Mourinho said on Monday: "It's not a big deal but, in four days, I have my doubts." Prior to Rooney's Boxing Day absence, Luke Shaw was the only player unavailable through injury and the defender was described by his manager as "not far" from a return.
Welcome back... It's likely that we'll be seeing some familiar faces on Saturday. Thirty players have played for both United and Middlesbrough over the years and the two latest ones, Fabio da Silva and Victor Valdes, are expected to feature in this weekend's meeting. Fabio made over 50 appearances for the Reds between 2008 and 2014, while Valdes swapped Manchester for Teeside in the summer. Former Manchester City striker Alvaro Negredo is also in the Boro ranks and has five Premier League goals to his name this season.
What have our players been saying? Jesse Lingard told MUTV: "If the lads stick together and win the games we should be winning then I don’t see why we can’t be in a good position in May and challenging for the title. We’ve found our match rhythm now, and a lot of players are playing their part and helping us win games. We need to keep that going; if we can, it will put us in a good place in January."
How have Boro been getting on? Well, after winning promotion to the top flight last season, Aitor Karanka's men enjoyed a steady start to life back in the Premier League, before hitting a bit of a stumbling block. However, important wins against relegation rivals Hull City and Swansea City earlier this month came as a welcome boost for the Teesside team and they will go into the New Year outside of the drop zone, despite losing 1-0 at Burnley on Boxing Day in a combative contest marred by 11 bookings.
United's record on this day... This will be the 18th time we've played on New Year's Eve. The Reds have won nine and drawn four of the previous 17, scoring 42 goals in the process. Middlesbrough were also the opposition on New Year's Eve in 1927, when United ran out 2-1 winners at Ayresome Park.
Tell me an interesting fact... Middlesbrough boss Karanka has spoken openly about Mourinho's influence on his career, saying it was the United manager who persuaded him to get into coaching. Karanka was headhunted to be Mourinho's assistant at Real Madrid in 2010, and the pair worked together for three years in the Spanish capital, winning La Liga in 2011/12.
What are the other top-flight fixtures on New Year's Eve? Most Premier League clubs will be in action on Saturday, with two games to follow on the first day of 2017...
Saturday 31 December (15:00 GMT unless stated)
Burnley v Sunderland
Chelsea v Stoke City
Leicester City v West Ham United
Southampton v West Bromwich Albion
Swansea City v Bournemouth
Liverpool v Manchester City (17:30)
Sunday 1 January 2017
Watford v Tottenham Hotspur (13:30)
Arsenal v Crystal Palace (16:00)
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