Marcus Rashford will replace Anthony Martial in the Manchester United starting lineup against Chelsea at Old Trafford on Thursday.
Manchester United will aim to seal their top-four qualification when they welcome Chelsea to Old Trafford on Thursday night. And Erik ten Hag has greeted a positive update on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Marcus Rashford has finally regained fitness after missing the last few games. And after recovering from an illness, the Englishman should be available to take on Chelsea on Thursday. That leaves only four first-team players on the sidelines.
Phil Jones, Lisandro Martinez, Marcel Sabitzer, and Donny van de Beek are in the treatment room. And none of the four players will play again this season. Meanwhile, Erik ten Hag discussed Rashford’s return during his pre-match press conference.
The Dutchman said, “It looks like [he will be available], but yesterday he returns in training and he looks quite fit but we have to see today what the outcome is from the training – how did he recover and then we will make our choices.”
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With Rashford fit and available, the Englishman will be an automatic pick in the final third. He should replace Anthony Martial in the starting lineup after the Frenchman’s sulk session this past weekend.
So Rashford will join Jadon Sancho and Antony in the offensive unit against Chelsea on Thursday. And Alejandro Garnacho and Martial will be backup options on the bench. Meanwhile, Bruno Fernandes will reprise his usual no. 10 role.
As for the midfield unit, there is no reason to look past Casemiro and Christian Eriksen. The duo should feature in all three remaining games this season. And Scott McTominay and Fred will find themselves on the bench again.
Meanwhile, the defensive department should not see any shuffles. So Aaron Wan-Bissaka will start ahead of Diogo Dalot as the right-back again. Wan-Bissaka will join Raphael Varane, Victor Lindelof, and Luke Shaw in the backline. And finally, David de Gea is an automatic pick between the sticks.
Predicted Manchester United XI: de Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Lindelof, Shaw; Casemiro, Eriksen; Antony, Bruno Fernandes, Sancho; Rashford
