Manchester United can book themselves a second trip to Wembley this season by beating Fulham in the FA Cup quarter-final on Sunday.
United host the Cottagers at Old Trafford as they look to carry through momentum from their Europa League victory over Real Betis. Erik ten Hag's side flew to Seville this week with a 4-1 lead, and Marcus Rashford scored the only goal at the Estadio Benito Villamarin on Thursday evening to wrap up a 5-1 aggregate win set up a last-eight clash with Sevilla.
In Fulham, they face a side eyeing a shock cup triumph to cap off what has been a brilliant season at Craven Cottage. Marco Silva's side have hit a bump in the road with consecutive defeats to Arsenal and Brentford, but enjoyed a seven-game unbeaten run prior to those losses and will be confident of an upset.
ALSO READ: Erik ten Hag meets Sir Jim Ratcliffe during takeover talks
Ten Hag has never been one to employ wholesale changes and will likely stick to his guns with a trip to Wembley within their grasp. David de Gea has started all three previous rounds and the 32-year-old is expected to do so again, having kept two clean sheets in a row.
Ahead of the Spaniard, normal service should resume with Raphael Varane coming back in to partner Lisandro Martinez at centre-back, with Harry Maguire dropping back down to the bench. Luke Shaw and Diogo Dalot were both rested on Thursday with United in such a commanding lead, and Ten Hag will likely bring both back into the picture for Fulham.
Changes will be enforced in the middle of the park with Casemiro serving the first of his four-game domestic ban for a straight red against Southampton. The Brazilian can still play in European competition and completed the full 90 minutes on Thursday, but his absence could push Fred back into the more defensive role as Marcel Sabitzer enjoys his fifth start since joining on loan from Bayern Munich.
Bruno Fernandes has played more minutes than any other player - goalkeepers included - across Europe's top five leagues this season, a stat that proves his importance to Ten Hag's way of playing. The Portuguese international will again bear the creative burden on Sunday, with Rashford and possibly Jadon Sancho providing danger from wide areas.
Upfront, Wout Weghorst could continue to lead the line following Ten Hag's admission that Anthony Martial will not be available for the cup tie, and the Dutchman will hope to use cup football as the catalyst for more goals, following his first two in the Carabao Cup and Europa League.
Predicted line-up: De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Martinez, Shaw; Fred, Sabitzer, Fernandes; Rashford, Sancho, Weghorst
READ NEXT
