Manchester United face Charlton Athletic in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals tonight, a second successive cup tie at Old Trafford.
This is the third home draw Manchester United has had in the competition, following victories over Aston Villa and Burnley.
United is heavily favored tonight against the League One opposition, so the biggest danger will be complacency.
With that in mind, we expect manager Erik ten Hag to name an experienced side, despite the presence of fringe players Facundo Pellistri and Di’Shon Bernard in training.
Predicted Manchester United XI v Charlton
The biggest decision for Manchester United comes in goal. Speaking to the club website, Ten Hag indicated he would be giving first-choice stopper David de Gea a rest.
This leaves him choosing between two former England internationals, Tom Heaton and Jack Butland in goal, and considering Ten Hag has expressed some sympathy with Heaton for a lack of opportunities, we would expect he plays it safe and selects Heaton.
At right-back, we expect to see Aaron Wan-Bissaka return to the team, with Tyrell Malacia continuing at left-back, and Diogo Dalot and Luke Shaw both saved for the weekend’s Manchester derby.
In defense, we have been predicting it for a couple of games now, Lisandro Martinez will start tonight for the first time since the World Cup. He came off the bench in the last couple of matches, and Ten Hag will want him tuned up ahead of the derby.
Alongside him, expect Raphael Varane to be rested, and while we could see Victor Lindelof come in, it will probably be Harry Maguire who is selected, with Ten Hag looking for his captain to step up, with Bruno Fernandes suspended.
In midfield, we are likely to see a return of ‘McFred’, with Casemiro rested and Scott McTominay and Fred starting together.
Fernandes’ suspension means Christian Eriksen will be deployed further forward, with Donny van de Beek out injured.
In attack, United’s options are still a little limited, and we see one change from Friday’s game, with Alejandro Garnacho coming in for Antony.
Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial will likely start the game, although an ideal situation would see United get into an unassailable lead and take both players off. If either does get left on the bench, then it would be Anthony Elanga coming in.
