A place in the FA Cup quarter-finals will be up for grabs on Sunday evening when Manchester United cross swords with Fulham at Old Trafford.
The Red Devils controversially progressed past Leicester City 2-1 in the fourth round of the FA Cup, with Harry Maguire scoring the winner in stoppage time which would have been chopped off had VAR being in place on that night. Inconsistent results have been the theme of Ruben Amorim’s tenure so far, but his 10-man showed great grit and character to come from a goal down to beat Ipswich Town 3-2 in the Premier League at home in midweek.
This is certain to give the Mancunian side confidence heading into this tasty cup tie against Fulham, who reached the fifth round by dumping Wigan Athletic 2-1.
Manchester United Team News
Patrick Dorgu will serve his first of a three-game suspension after he was shown a red card following VAR check for a reckless stamp on Ipswich’s Omari Hutchinson on Wednesday evening.
Ruben Amorim revealed in his pre-match presser that Alejandro Garnacho picked up a small knock while striking a ball against Ipswich but expects him to be fit to face Fulham. There are no new injured players returning for this cup game.
Predicted Manchester United lineup vs Fulham (3-4-2-1)
Goalkeeper
With Altay Bayindir and Tom Heaton still out, there are no prizes for guessing who will be in the Manchester United goal against Fulham. After another error-strewn display in midweek, Andre Onana should be under pressure to produce a clean performance against the Cottagers.
Defence
Amorim has barely got room to rotate his squad due to injury problems. So, there is expectation for Leny Yoro, Harry Maguire and Matthijs de Ligt to feature again in a three-man backline.
With Maguire, who scored the winner against Ipswich, operating centrally, De Ligt and Yoro have to be tight and switched on to defend the spaces out wide.
Midfield
Amorim may opt adding more solidity and physicality in the midfield ranks on Sunday by bringing Casemiro in the first XI. If he starts, the Brazilian will partner Manuel Ugarte. The South American duo have to be extremely good on and off the ball to disrupt Fulham from playing their natural game.
Noussair Mazraoui should start at right wing-back, with Diogo Dalot replacing Dorgu on the opposite flank.
Attack
Bruno Fernandes produced a Man of the Match display against Ipswich, playing a key role in all three of United’s goals. This should give him a lot of confidence to perform against Marco Silva’s side. With possibly Casemiro and Ugarte behind him, the Portuguese should take up on one of the advanced roles along with Joshua Zirkzee.
Severely lacking confidence and out of form, Rasmus Hojlund should still be tasked with leading the Man United attack. This means Alejandro Garnacho has to be content with a spot on the bench.
I am Rohan Sengupta from one of the busiest cities in India, Mumbai. A Journalism graduate with a keen interest in sports, football is something I simply cannot live without and writing, discussing and analyzing the game is what I do 24*7.
