Manchester United travel to Molineux to face Wolverhampton Wanderers on Thursday evening, hoping to return to winning ways in the Premier League.
The Red Devils booked a spot in the FA Cup round of 16 with a 4-2 win over Newport County at Rodney Parade on Sunday afternoon. They went the entire January unbeaten—which involved a third-round FA Cup win over Wigan Athletic and a 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur just over a fortnight ago.
So, Erik ten Hag and Co. will be raring to start February with a win over Wolves, who are on a seven-game unbeaten run across all formats.
Manchester United Team News
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has confirmed that Marcus Rashford will be back for the trip to Wolves after the England international was omitted from the squad that beat Newport in the FA Cup at the weekend, having missed training due to illness.
Casemiro, Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw all returned to action last time out, while Lisandro Martinez made his first start for the club since suffering a foot injury in September. Aaron Wan-Bissaka is a doubt after missing the Newport game, but the likes of Mason Mount, Tyrell Malacia, Victor Lindelof and Anthony Martial remain sidelined.
Elsewhere, Sofyan Amrabat is unlikely to be back in time for the game after Morocco exited from the AFCON at the hands of South Africa on Tuesday.
Predicted Manchester United lineup vs Wolves (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper
Altay Bayindir made his Man United debut in the 4-2 win over Newport County in the FA Cup at the weekend. Still, No. 1 Andre Onana is back after Cameroon’s elimination from the AFCON and should start against Wolves.
Defence
Harry Maguire, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Jonny Evans are all available for selection in defence, but Erik ten Hag is likely to stick with the same back four that started against Newport County on Sunday – Diogo Dalot, Raphael Varane, Lisandro Martinez and Luke Shaw.
Dalot and Shaw will operate as the full-backs, providing width and flair in the future whilst holding their own defensively when required. Meanwhile, Martinez will once again partner Varane in central defence and the duo should be raring to keep a clean sheet against Wolves.
Midfield
Casemiro partnered Kobbie Mainoo in the middle of the park at Newport and Ten Hag is unlikely to break that pairing, with Christian Eriksen starting on the bench again. Bruno Fernandes will reprise his No.10 role, always on the hunt to play those incisive through balls to unlock the Wolves defence.
Attack
With Anthony Martial sidelined until April, it is obvious that Rasmus Hojlund will lead the Man United attack. Having scored in back-to-back games, the Dane’s confidence should be high heading into this game.
Of course, Hojlund will expect better service from wide players Antony and Alejandro Garnacho on Thursday, with Marcus Rashford settling for a spot on the bench along with Amad Diallo and Omari Forson.
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.
