Manchester United registered a narrow 1-0 victory against the Championship outfit Watford FC in FA Cup third-round tie. An early goal from Captain Scott McTominay was enough to take the Reds to the next round.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer shuffled his side by making nine changes in the team. Bruno Fernandez, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial, Harry Maguire, Aaran-Wan Bisaaka, David De Gea all were named on the bench.
Surprisingly, Paul Pogba, Luke Shaw, and Victor Lindelof were missing from the squad against Watford. In the post-match press conference, Solskjaer stated that these three players were not a part of the team due to their injuries.
Luke Shaw missed almost a month of football this season due to a hamstring injury. Paul Pogba missed a few games in November last year due to an ankle injury. Victor Lindelof himself admitted a few days back that he has been carrying a back injury for a few months now. He is very pivotal to the current United team, thus, the manager needs to give him as much rest as possible.
A rare start to fringe players like Brandon Williams, Jesse Lingard, Donny Van De Beek, and Juan Mata was offered. Solskjaer hinted in the pre-match conference that Odion Ighalo might play a role in the game but that didn’t happen.
Eric Bailly started the game at the back but was forced off just before half-time due to another injury. A nasty collision with Dean Henderson was deemed serious. But, he was able to walk off the pitch with the help of doctors.
Bailly has struggled with a number of injuries throughout his career at Manchester United. Solskjaer will be hoping that it’s not a big injury and something which he can get over very quickly. After the game, Eric Bailly tweeted “I am Ok.” You can see the tweet below.
Big week coming up for United
Manchester United has a huge seven days ahead of them. They will be playing their league game in hand on Tuesday against Burnley at Turf Moor. On Sunday, they will make a big trip to Anfield to lock horns with Liverpool.
Currently, Manchester United is sitting at the second spot of the league table with 33 points. Liverpool is at the top of the table with the same number of points as United but with a better goal difference. If Man United wins both of the upcoming Premier League games, they will leapfrog Liverpool to sit at the apex of the table.
The fans of Manchester United have not seen their team sitting at the top of the table for many days in the last few years. They will be absolutely thrilled if United can keep their fine run of form going in the Premier League. They have won 13 points out of the last 15 points available.
This is a very crucial point of the season for Solskjaer and his men. They are already out of the Champions League and Carabao Cup this season. But if they can put their hands on the Premier League trophy, no one will have any complaints.
Edinson Cavani has served his three-game ban and will be available for selection against Burnley. Solskjaer will be hoping that Pogba, Lindelof, and Shaw can leave their respective injuries behind and be ready for selection this week. Do you think that Man United can get positive results in both of the fixtures this week?
