Hit by injury Tuesday night, Manchester United plays Nottingham Forest in the fifth round of the FA Cup at the City Ground. The goal is to get back to winning ways.
United lost to Fulham at home on Saturday, ending their five-game winning streak. The last time these two teams played, in December, United lost 2-1 to Forest. Not long before Alex Iwobi scored the game-winning goal at Old Trafford, United had tied the score thanks to a goal from Harry Maguire.
After losing to Fulham, United is now eight points behind the top four teams, which makes it very unlikely that they will make it into the Champions League next season. They still have a real chance to win a prize this season and save what’s left of the season in the FA Cup.
This season, injuries have made things worse for United, and boss Erik ten Hag rarely has a full-strength starting XI to choose from. Maguire has now been added to the list of players who will not be going to the City Ground. Last week, Luke Shaw and Rasmus Hojlund were also missing.
Raphael Varane and Bruno Fernandes are also not sure if they will be able to play, which means United could go to the Midlands with a very small team.
Still, Ten Hag is expected to do what he always does in goal on the banks of the Trent and give Andre Onana the start. This season, the Cameroonian has played in all but one of United’s 36 games across all tournaments. The only game he missed was the FA Cup win over Newport County in the fourth round because he was in Cameroon for the Africa Cup of Nations.
If he had been healthy enough, the star player from Inter Milan would have started that game, just like he did in the third round against Wigan Athletic. Back-up custodian Altay Bayindir made his only start for the club so far in the win over Newport.
Ten Hag will have to make at least one change to the back four, but he may have to make two if Varane and Maguire both get hurt. If the French player can’t play, Jonny Evans will probably start in the middle of the defense with Victor Lindelof, who played at left-back last weekend.
Diogo Dalot might have to switch from right back to left back if Lindelof goes into one of the two centre-back spots. This would make room for young Willy Kambwala to start. He plays center-back for a living, but he can also play right-back.
Because Fernandes’ fitness is unclear, Ten Hag may also have to make a change in the middle of the pitch. And if the captain can’t be reached, Scott McTominay might be asked to start at the very end of the engine room.
Both Kobbie Mainoo and Casemiro are expected to help the Scot in the middle of the pitch. The second player has been cleared to play again after leaving the Fulham game with a head injury.
Ten Hag has to make a big choice about who leads the attack line. Marcus Rashford played in the middle against Fulham, but he wasn’t the center of attention United needed without Hojlund.
That being said, the Dutchman doesn’t have many choices, so Rashford could get the nod again. Alejandro Garnacho will probably help him from one side if he starts in the middle, but which side will depend on who else joins the attack.
Because Omari Forson had a bad game against Fulham, he could be taken off the field. This would allow Antony, whom Ten Hag supported in his press conference before the game, to come back and start. Amad will also be trying to be a part of it.
United is likely to start Onana, Kambwala, Evans, Lindelof, Dalot, Mainoo, Casemiro, McTominay, Antony, Rashford, and Garnacho against Nottingham Forest.
