Good morning Man Utd fans
Manchester United host Aston Villa at Old Trafford in the third round of the FA Cup tonight.
United captain Harry Maguire is a doubt as he is still dealing with an injury and has yet to start training again.
Victor Lindelof, on the other hand, returned to practice on Thursday after testing positive for coronavirus, but Paul Pogba remains sidelined with a thigh injury.
Eric Bailly and Hannibal Mejbri are out on international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Villa manager Steven Gerrard, on the other hand, said he will field a strong line-up against United.
Tyrone Mings and Ollie Watkins are likely to return after missing the defeat at Brentford last week.
However, Kortney Hause is facing a late fitness call after reporting some “tightness” at Brentford.
And ex-United captain Ashley Young will be checked after fracturing his toe.
Star signing Philippe Coutinho is unlikely to be involved after agreeing to join on loan from Barcelona.
Coutinho’s debut is likely to take place against United in the Premier League on January 15.
Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo has held crisis talks with his agent Jorge Mendes about his future at Old Trafford.
Sunsport understand Ronaldo is frustrated by how United are performing.
The Portugal captain is also disillusioned with Red Devils interim manager Ralf Rangnick’s tactics and style of football.
A source close to Ronaldo revealed: “Cristiano is very concerned about what is happening at United. The team is receiving a lot of criticism and he knows he is regarded as one of the leaders.
“There are quite a lot of problems and Cristiano is feeling the pressure and is very stressed by the situation.
“He desperately wants his United move to be a success, but he is starting to recognise that winning trophies with the current set up could be a real struggle.
“Jorge came to see him and they spent time chatting through how things are going, what they think are the problems, how they might be solved and what the solutions may be. Nothing has been ruled out.”
And United star Pogba will return to full training this coming week after getting the green light from the club’s doctors.
The star midfielder has been sidelined for two months after sustaining a thigh injury while on international duty away with France.
SunSport understand the 28-year-old did some light running with his conditioners at Carrington last week.
Pogba has impressed Rangnick with his attitude and it is understood he has targeted a first-team return by the end of this month.
Finally, United star Bruno Fernandes slammed a rumour linking him with a move to Barcelona.
Fernandes became the latest Red Devils ace to squash gossip about unhappiness at Old Trafford.
Portuguese outlet SPORT TV claimed the playmaker had been offered to Barca.
But the Portugal international replied on Instagram: “And I thought the new year only started a few days ago, yet we’re already on April 1! Or is this once again just bad journalism?”
Source: The Sun