Attacking-midfielder Bruno Fernandes will be walking a disciplinary tightrope when Manchester United face Reading in the fourth round of the FA Cup at Old Trafford on Saturday evening.
The Portuguese international, who scored his third goal in his last four games against Nottingham Forest in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday evening, is just one booking away from being forced to serve a one-match suspension in the FA Cup. Fernandes was booked in the third-round win over Everton earlier this month and a second booking will result in a ban.
The stand-in captain, who has scored two goals for the Reds in the FA Cup signing from Sporting Lisbon three years ago, was booked less than half an hour into the 3-1 win over the Toffees at Old Trafford. FA rules state that where a player's club enters the competition at the third round stage, any player who picks up two yellow cards will be hit with a one-match suspension.
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The cut-off point for avoiding a ban when collecting two yellow cards in the FA Cup is not until the quarter-finals (sixth round). United are still two wins away from reaching that stage of the competition.
Though Fernandes is in danger of risking a ban, it is possible that he could be left out of Erik ten Hag's plans for the visit of the Championship Royals, though he has been a virtually ever-present figure this season. United are strong favourites to beat Paul Ince's side and progress to the next stage of the competition, meaning Ten Hag could ring the changes in some capacity, though he has approached every cup fixture with the utmost respect this season.
The Reds' 3-0 win over Forest in the first-leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final, however, could mean that the Dutchman is prepared to go with a stronger team than he may have originally planned to, given they are in a strong position to progress to the final of the Carabao Cup. Had the scoreline not been favourable to United against Forest, Ten Hag would have been more likely to ring the changes against Reading, saving key his key personnel for the reverse tussle with Forest next Wednesday night.
Ten Hag named a strong line-up when United faced Championship opposition in Burnley in the Carabao Cup earlier this season, meaning he could do the same on Saturday. Fernandes has already served bans in both the Premier League and Carabao Cup this season for meeting the threshold of yellow cards needed to earn a one-match suspension in each of those two competitions.
No other United player was booked during the win over Everton earlier this month, meaning nobody else is at immediate risk of picking up an FA Cup ban, in the event of the Reds winning and reaching the fifth round.
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