Manchester United will be without seven first-team stars when they face Barcelona in the first leg of the Europa League knockout play-off on Thursday.
The Red Devils take on Barcelona at the Camp Nou tomorrow and ahead of the game, manager Erik ten Hag will have to cope without several key players.
Anthony Martial, Antony and Scott McTominay have been nursing short-term injuries and they won’t play any part tomorrow after being left out of the squad.
Alongside them, Christian Eriksen and Donny van de Beek are also sidelined with long-term injuries while Lisandro Martinez and Marcel Sabitzer are suspended.
Martinez will be serving a one-game European suspension after picking up three yellow cards during the group stage of the Europa League campaign.
Meanwhile, Sabitzer received three yellow cards playing for Bayern Munich in the Champions League. The ban has been carried over to the Europa League.
Hence, United are set to be without seven stars on Thursday, but they will have the services of Casemiro.
The Brazilian is currently serving a three-game domestic suspension, but this will have no impact on his involvement for the club in the Europa League.
United are missing four to five regular starters for the first leg but Ten Hag will still be aiming to secure a positive result from the midweek trip to Barcelona.
The Red Devils won’t have it easy against one of the best performing sides in Europe. They will need to be defensively assured in the early stages tomorrow.
Luke Shaw has already played as the left centre-back in Martinez’s absence and we could see something similar. He got another trial in the role at Leeds.
In midfield, Casemiro’s availability is a huge boost but Fred needs to turn up as well. The midfield battle could well decide the outcome of the contest.
A win would be an excellent result for United but a draw won’t be bad either. The Red Devils can ill-afford a costly defeat ahead of the return leg at home.
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