Erik ten Hag has named his starting line-up for Manchester United's Premier League showdown with Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford this evening, making a handful of changes.
United, who have not faced Forest since beating them 8-1 in February 1999, will be looking to register a fourth successive victory following last Wednesday night's 2-0 win over Burnley in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup. Marcus Rashford and Christian Eriksen both scored to seal a winning start to the restart.
It means that Ten Hag will be determined to see another strong performance and victory from his side this evening, as they look to move to within a point of the top four in their first Premier League game since the World Cup. The Dutchman, as expected, has opted to make a few changes to the side that won in the Carabao Cup, making four in total.
READ MORE: United vs Forest LIVE
David de Gea, Raphael Varane, who has recently returned to the club following France's run to the World Cup final, Luke Shaw and Antony return, meaning Martin Dubravka, Victor Lindelof, Scott McTominay and Alejandro Garnacho have dropped out. Lindelof and McTominay have been ruled out of the matchday squad because of an illness that has impacted the camp in the build-up to tonight's fixture.
Meanwhile, Harry Maguire, Zidane Iqbal and Fred have been named among the substitutes. However, Diogo Dalot and Lisandro Martinez remain unavailable.
Having made the decision to make four changes to the side that was victorious against Burnley, Ten Hag will be hoping to see another victory from his team, as they look to make a winning start to the busy festive period. It is the return of Varane 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 throw the Frenchman, who has not played for United since October 22, straight back into the team:
As you can see from the messages displayed in the tweets above, Ten Hag's decision to throw Varane into the starting line-up has gone down well. He is a focal point for the Reds at the back and his inclusion in the team has given them a timely boost.
United starting line-up: De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Shaw, Malacia; Casemiro, Eriksen, Fernandes; Antony, Martial, Rashford.
Substitutes: Heaton, Bennett, Maguire, Williams, Fred, Van de Beek, Iqbal, Elanga, Garnacho.
This evening's contest kicks off at 8:00pm and you can follow all of the action on our live matchday blog, which you can access by clicking here.
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