Man United will aim to get back on track when they travel to Cyprus on Thursday night to play Omonia Nicosia in the Europa League.
Manchester United will be grateful to have an opportunity to make apologies as soon as Thursday evening after being defeated 6-3 by cross-city rivals Manchester City in Sunday’s derby at the Etihad Stadium.
United’s Europa League group stage campaign will resume later this week when they travel to Cyprus to face Omonia Nicosia. After their first two group matches, the Cypriots are meaningless, making United overwhelming favourites to win back-to-back away games in the competition.
The trip will be only United’s second game of a tough October schedule that will see them play nine games in 29 days. It is a difficult assignment for any club to manage, but United are lucky to have enough depth to rotate their pack while still fielding a star-studded squad.
in Goodison Park Erik ten Hag’s team selection on Thursday evening will almost certainly provide a strong indication of his ambitions for the Toffees meeting barely 72 hours later. Mass changes were initially envisaged, but United are under pressure to rebound back with a fury following Sunday’s horror show at the Etihad; Ten Hag may be forced to field a stronger team than he desired.
If such is the case, you can bet that the United leader will still consider some changes, albeit not on a large scale. After all, Casemiro and Cristiano Ronaldo will be desperate for minutes after being kept out of the starting lineup against Manchester City.
Despite being 4-0 down at halftime, Ten Hag chose Anthony Martial to come off the bench instead of calling on Ronaldo to try to spark the comeback of all comebacks. He came on for Marcus Rashford and scored twice, giving United a little more respectable result.
Rashford started in the center of United’s front three, like he had against Arsenal four weeks before, flanked by Jadon Sancho and Antony. Neither of them earned much credit, with only Antony’s stunning effort to make it 4-1 saving him from further criticism at the final whistle.
Sancho, on the other hand, was a virtual spectator for the majority of the game until he was taken off and replaced by Fred with 20 minutes remaining. He was unable to provide Tyrell Malacia with the defensive cover he need, and he failed to make an impression against his previous club.
Sancho, on the other hand, was a virtual spectator for the majority of the game until he was taken off and replaced by Fred with 20 minutes remaining. He was unable to provide Tyrell Malacia with the defensive cover he need, and he failed to make an impression against his previous club.
