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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Sport
George Smith

'Easy Brighton win!' - Manchester United fans cannot believe Erik ten Hag decision for FA Cup tie

Erik ten Hag has named his starting line-up for Manchester United's FA Cup semi-final against Brighton & Hove Albion at Wembley this afternoon, making a handful of changes.

United, who last reached the final of the competition in 2018, will be looking to get back to winning ways after Thursday night's 3-0 defeat to Sevilla in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final. The Reds were second best all over the pitch in Spain, being outclassed from start to finish, meaning they exited the competition 5-2 on aggregate.

It means that Ten Hag will be determined to see a much-improved showing from his team this afternoon, as they look to set up an all-Manchester FA Cup final against City in June. The Dutchman, as expected, has opted to make a few changes to the side that was beaten in Spain less than 72 hours ago, making three in total.

READ MORE: Brighton vs United LIVE

Luke Shaw, Bruno Fernandes, who missed the trip to Spain through suspension, and Marcus Rashford have come into the side, meaning Harry Maguire, who is suspended, Marcel Sabitzer and Jadon Sancho have dropped out.

Meanwhile, the likes of Tyrell Malacia, Facundo Pellistri and Wout Weghorst have been named among the substitutes. However, the likes of Raphael Varane and Scott McTominay are among those who remain sidelined through injury.

Having made the decision to make three changes to the side that was beaten by Sevilla, Ten Hag will be hoping to witness a much-needed improvement, as the Reds aim to reach their second domestic cup final of the season. It is the inclusion of David de Gea in goal that has attracted the most attention from United's supporters in the immediate aftermath of the team news being confirmed.

Below, MEN Sport has taken a close look at what some of United's supporters have had to say in response to Ten Hag's decision to stick with the Spaniard after such a difficult evening against Sevilla three days ago:

As you can see from the messages displayed in the tweets above, Ten Hag's decision to stick with De Gea has infuriated some supporters, who believe he should have been axed from the starting line-up after his performance in Spain. He was guilty of committing three errors against the La Liga side.

United starting line-up: De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Shaw, Dalot; Casemiro, Eriksen, Fernandes; Antony, Martial, Rashford.

Substitutes: Butland, Williams, Malacia, Fred, Sabitzer, Elanga, Pellistri, Sancho, Weghorst.

This afternoon's contest at Wembley kicks off at 4:30pm and you can follow all of the action on our live matchday blog, which you can access by clicking here.

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