Projected Manchester United Starting XI for Crucial FA Cup Clash with Nottingham Forest
Admin 3-4 minutes 28/2/2024
Manchester United are solely reliant on the FA Cup this season to achieve some level of success and after Saturday’s defeat, it got a whole lot more important.
Not only does Wednesday’s FA Cup game represent the opportunity to progress toward a trophy but also to regain some momentum before heading to the Etihad on Sunday.
With this in mind, Erik ten Hag is likely to name a strong starting line-up while being forced into changes due to injury, also giving others the chance to earn their place in the starting line-up.
He will however also have to contend with multiple different injuries with new concerns over Bruno Fernandes, Harry Maguire and Raphael Varane – as club media reported.
Here’s our predicted line-up to face Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup…
Ten Hag will see the FA Cup as a real opportunity to lift some silverware this season and with victory against Forest leading to the quarter-finals, there is a real chance.
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So with that in mind, we expect Ten Hag to once more take this competition extremely seriously and start Andre Onana in goal. The Cameroonian has been one of the more solid players lately for United and is guaranteed to start.
In the full-back position, Diogo Dalot starts on the right but the left remains a concern with Sofyan Amrabat likely to be chosen as the least bad option to start here due to a crisis at centre-half.
The two centre-halves are likely to change, with Varane being a doubt while last weekend’s standout Maguire, is out. So in their place, Victor Lindelof and Jonny Evans should both start.
In midfield, Kobbie Mainoo will start as he’s become a mainstay in Ten Hag’s team in recent months, alongside the club’s only real defensive midfielder, Casemiro.
Ahead of these two, it probably won’t be Fernandes as the captain is a doubt and therefore shouldn’t be risked with the Manchester Derby on Sunday. So we see Scott McTominay as the most likely choice with Mason Mount not fit yet.
The wing positions could see Alejandro Garnacho start on the left once more, but on the right, it could be anyone. It could be Antony, who would be keen to impress after he was only handed 55 seconds against Fulham, used as the fourth choice on the right. But we think Amad Diallo could get the nod ahead of him, as he was on Saturday.
Up front, it’s unlikely that Ten Hag will start anyone there except Marcus Rashford who’s the only option with experience in the role.