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Erik ten Hag has named Casemiro, Bruno Fernandes and Christian Eriksen in midfield for Manchester United’s crucial Europa League clash against FC Porto.
United are heading into the match off the back of a devastating 0-3 loss against Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.
The Red Devils were second best for large parts of that game and considering they were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw by FC Twente just a few days before, Ten Hag is under massive pressure to mastermind a victory against Porto at Estádio do Dragão.
It’s unlikely that anything short of a convincing win will appease United supporters, who are growing disgruntled with the team’s progress under Erik ten Hag.
Ahead of kick-off, Ten Hag’s XI has been revealed and the United boss has elected to deploy a midfield trio of Casemiro, Eriksen and Fernandes.
Out of the three, only Fernandes started in last weekend’s defeat at the hands of Spurs, although he was sent off during the opening 45 minutes. The decision was later overturned after United launched a successful appeal. Eriksen and Casemiro had to be content with a place on the bench but both were afforded some minutes.
Ten Hag used Casemiro, Eriksen and Fernandes as his primary midfield partnership during his first season in charge and they mostly did well. It’s unsurprising that the United boss has resorted to a tried and tested method in the middle of the park.
Andre Onana starts in goal with a defensive four of Noussair Mazraoui, Matthijs de Ligt, Lisandro Martinez and Diogo Dalot ahead of him.
Joshua Zirkzee drops to the bench, with Rasmus Hojlund given the responsibility of leading the Red Devils’ attacking line vs. Porto.
Hojlund is flanked on either side by Amad Diallo and Marcus Rashford.
Alongside Zirkzee, the other subs are Altay Bayindir, Tom Heaton, Jonny Evans, Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire, Toby Collyer, Dan Gore, Manuel Ugarte, Antony and Alejandro Garnacho.
Presenting your Reds for Europa League matchday 2️⃣🔴#MUFC || #UEL
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 3, 2024
Kick-off is at 20:00 BST.
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