Manchester United are going to try and continue their run in the FA Cup this season, as they face Shrewsbury Town in the fifth round of the competition on Monday Night at New Meadow.
United are set to take this game very seriously as manager Louis van Gaal came out earlier in the week and said that he would rather win the FA Cup this season than the Europa League. This statement may be true, as United were the shock result on Thursday night as they lost 2-1 to FC Midtjylland at the MCH Arena in Denmark.
United lost to FC Mdtjylland on Thursday
The saving grace for van Gaal is the fact that the Shrews have been struggling in League One all season and still find themselves around the relegation zone with just 15 games to go. This should give the United side a lot of confidence in the fact that they should beat them, but veteran Michael Carrick has shared his fears that things could get worse for Manchester United next week.
The Shrews have actually been stuck in the North of England for the past few weeks after games against fellow relegation strugglers, Fleetwood and Blackpool. At Fleetwood, they were held to a goalless draw whereas, at Bloomfield Road with Blackpool, the fans were treated to a 3-2 thriller. Goals from Nathaniel Knight-Percival, Shaun Whalley and Andy Mangan secured three points.
In the last game of this tournament, both sides obviously came out victorious as United beat Derby County 3-1 and Shrewsbury beat Sheffield Wednesday 3-2.
Team news
If one specific factor in this game could sway the result, it would be the injury list, and United certainly have a full one. Starting players like David De Gea (Knee), Cameron Borthwick-Jackson (Illness), Wayne Rooney (Knee), Matteo Darmian (Shoulder) and Marouane Fellaini (Hamstring) have joined a long list of injuries for the Red Devils. They will accompany Adnan Januzaj (Hamstring), Phil Jones (Knock), Ashley Young (Groin), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Knee), Marcos Rojo (Shoulder), Antonio Valencia (Ankle) and Luke Shaw (Leg) in the physio’s room.
Shrewsbury, on the other hand, will see former Manchester United midfielder Larnell Cole back into the side after a brief injury spell and their manager Micky Mellon has hinted that Jack Grimmer will make a return for this FA Cup game.