Manchester United host West Ham United in the FA Cup fifth round on Tuesday night – and you can listen to it live on talkSPORT.
The Red Devils beat rivals Liverpool in the last round and must now defeat the Hammers as their quest for silverware kicks up a notch.
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A 3-3 draw with Everton at the weekend has dampened hopes of a Premier League title challenge being mounted, although by no means is it impossible.
The loss of ground on Man City though sees United five points behind in second place, but their foes have a game in hand.
With this being the case, it’s perhaps understandable that manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be eyeing the FA Cup eagerly.
If he gets past West Ham, they will be into the quarter-finals and three wins from lifting a trophy, which would be a real boon for the club.
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Rotation is still likely for Manchester United and goalkeeper Dean Henderson will once again have the chance to impress having seen no.1 David de Gea make two errors against Everton which led to goals.
And Solskjaer has no qualms about handing Henderson a start given his contributions already this season.
“Dean has done very well when he’s got the chance and he’s matured,” United manager Solskjaer said. “For me, he’s developed his game.
“I know he’s not played as many games as he would’ve done last season, but you see every game when he plays and in training his improvement, working hard on a couple of aspects that we’ve spoke about with him.
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“I’ve been impressed with his attitude and workrate. Of course he’s, how to say… he’s not the most patient guy.
“He wants to play every game because he knows that he’ll perform well, so long may it continue because he’s improved since he’s come here.”
And Solskjaer also reserved praise for Mason Greenwood who is impressing, particularly against Everton, even if the goals aren’t flowing as they once were.
“Mason was different class,” Solskjaer said. “I thought he was the standout performer on the pitch, he just didn’t get a goal that his performance deserves.
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“I think the last few games if you look at him closely, I know we scored nine against Southampton but if you look at his performance I thought his performance was top and he’s improved and matured immensely.
“He’s working with some of the top forwards in the country, of course. He’s learning off them and it’s exciting to see that he’s come over his blip and he’s playing really, really well.”
Manchester United team news
Pogba will miss the FA Cup fifth-round clash with West Ham and is set to be out for a few weeks.
The 27-year-old has been in fine form lately but was forced off in Saturday’s 3-3 draw against Everton with a thigh injury.
United boss Solskjaer does not expect defender Eric Bailly to be fit on Tuesday, while Phil Jones has yet to feature this season due to a knee injury.
In previous rounds the Norwegian has rotated some of his stars with Henderson, Alex Telles, and Donny van de Beek the most likely starters of those on the fringes.
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How Manchester United should line up
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