Nottingham Forest and Manchester United both have Wembley firmly in their sights ahead of the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final clash at the City Ground on Wednesday.
United’s last visit to Wembley saw a side managed by Jose Mourinho lift this very trophy back in 2017, with the home of English football the place where Steve Cooper’s side ended their 23-year wait for Premier League football last May.
Forest beat Midlands rivals’ Wolves on penalties in the quarter final earlier this month to get thus far, whilst United cruised past League One outfit Charlton Athletic, beating them 3-0 at Old Trafford.
United last played at the City Ground way back in 1999, where a brace each from Dwight Yorke and Andy Cole, as well as four goals from former boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer gave Sir Alex Ferguson’s side an 8-1 win a season where they eventually won the treble.
Team News
Forest will be without first choice goalkeeper Dean Henderson as the 25-year-old is currently side-lined for around four to six weeks due to a thigh injury sustained against Leicester City, though Henderson would be unavailable regardless as he is on loan from the Old Trafford club.
Former United man Jesse Lingard is also a doubt for the first leg due to a hamstring injury, though Lingard was pictured in training on Tuesday.
The 30-year-old spent 22 year at Old Trafford, having been apart of the academy set up since the age of seven.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CnzXA5CjN3i/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
Erik ten Hag will welcome midfield general Casemiro back with open arms, with the Brazilian missing in the defeat to Arsenal last Sunday due to suspension.
Defender Axel Tuanzebe is also fit and available, though he is far down the pecking order at centre back behind Lisandro Martinez, Raphael Varane, Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof.
Ten Hag had revealed last week that Jadon Sancho was back in team training however, he is not yet ready to return to the matchday squad.
Anthony Martial, who has already suffered a number of injuries this season, is out, along with Diogo Dalot who suffered an injury at the World Cup.
Donny van de Beek is out for the season after the Dutchman was on the wrong end of a nasty challenge to the knee in the game against Bournemouth.
Predicted Line-ups
Nottingham Forest: Hennessey; Aurier, Worrall, Boly, Lodi; Yates, Freuler, Mangala; Gibbs-White; Johnson, Surridge
Manchester United: Heaton; Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Martinez, Shaw; Casemiro, Fernandes, Fred; Antony, Weghorst, Rashford
Key players
In the absence of Lingard, Gibbs-White has taken the mantle in becoming Forest’s talisman since the turn of the year.
The Englishman arrived in a big money move worth £42.5 million last summer from boyhood club Wolves.
Should Forest overcome Ten Hag’s side over both legs, it’s very likely Gibbs-White will have had a part to play.
Though Casemiro maybe just as important for the Reds, Rashford has been United’s main source of goals this season having netted 17 times in all competitions, with the last of those coming in Sunday’s defeat at the Emirates.
Under the coaching of Ten Hag, Rashford has become a more complete forward, often starting as a central striker earlier in the season.
After a difficult last 18 months, the academy graduate seems to finally be hitting the heights many expected him to earlier on in his career, and with just 18 months left on Rashford’s current deal, United fans will be hoping the local lad can pen a new long-term contract very soon.
Match details
The game is being played at the City Ground, the home of Nottingham Forest. Kick-off is scheduled 20:00 GMT on Wednesday.
UK viewers can watch the game live on Sky Sports Main Event from 19:00 GMT, with live updates also available on VAVEL.
