Mason Greenwood could make way for Edinson Cavani while Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba should start when Manchester United take on Liverpool.
Manchester United will be aiming to bounce back to winning ways in the Premier League when they play hosts to bitter rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford on Tuesday night.
Leading up to the game, Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer does not have any fresh injury blows. However, the Red Devils will continue to be without captain Harry Maguire, who picked up an ankle injury at the weekend against Aston Villa. In addition, Phil Jones, Anthony Martial and Daniel James also remain unavailable for selection.
Providing an update on the condition of Maguire during his presser, Solskjaer said, “There was no fracture, but a ligament injury, of course, is serious as well. If I’m very positive – that’s maybe stretching it – I’m hopeful that he might be ready for it. I don’t think he’ll play in the league again before [the end of the season]. We’ll do everything we can to get him ready for the final.”
Solskjaer also addressed the fact that he will be forced into making changes to the team, considering that Manchester United will be playing their third game in four nights in the league. “It’s about managing the squad now and building momentum, building confidence, making sure we get enough points to get second [place] and then going into the final confident,” he said.
Having made as many as ten changes for Tuesday’s defeat to Leicester City, the Manchester United manager is expected to make wholesale alterations yet again on Thursday.
Starting from goal, Dean Henderson ought to come back into the side in place of David de Gea while Eric Bailly is the only defender likely to hold on to his place in the side. Brandon Williams, Axel Tuanzebe and Alex Telles will all drop out to make way for first-choice stars Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Victor Lindelof and Luke Shaw, respectively.
There will be a double change in the middle of the park as well, with Fred and Scott McTominay in line for a starting berth replacing Donny van de Beek and Nemanja Matic. Moving into the No. 10 role, Bruno Fernandes ought to return to the lineup after making a brief cameo in the defeat to Leicester on Tuesday. The Portuguese will be replacing Juan Mata in the side.
Youngsters Anthony Elanga and Amad Diallo, both of whom showed positive signs against the Foxes, are set to drop out as well, making way for Marcus Rashford and Paul Pogba out on the wings. The centre-forward position poses a dilemma for Solskjaer though, with Mason Greenwood in top form of late, while Edinson Cavani has been on an impressive goalscoring run as well.
However, with Greenwood having started both the games against Aston Villa and Leicester on Sunday and Tuesday, he could get a breather here, with Cavani starting against Liverpool.
Manchester United Predicted XI: Henderson; Wan-Bissaka, Bailly, Lindelof, Shaw; McTominay, Fred; Rashford, Fernandes, Pogba; Cavani
