Ten Hag recalls Antony to the starting line-up in Rashford’s place, with Alejandro Garnacho keeping ownership of the left wing spot.

Anthony Martial is also benched and is replaced by Rasmus Hojlund.

In midfield, Kobbie Mainoo also drops to the bench and is replaced by Sofyan Amrabat, who partners Scott McTominay with Bruno Fernandes ahead of them.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka is another to have been pulled from the starting XI. Diogo Dalot returns to right back, Luke Shaw to left back and Victor Lindelof returns to partner Harry Maguire at centre back.

Andre Onana is in goal.

At 18 years of age, Mainoo is likely to be rotated but the other changes could be seen as a response to their lackadaisical displays against Newcastle on Sunday.

All four appear on the bench.

There is a spot of good news for United as Jonny Evans is fit enough to be named among the substitutes. Curiously, he appears to replace Raphael Varane, who unless injured looks to have slipped even further down the centre-back pecking order.

The above are joined by Altay Bayindir, Sergio Reguilon, Facundo Pellistri and Donny van de Beek.

Lisandro Martinez, Tyrell Malacia, Casemiro, Christian Eriksen, Mason Mount and Amad Diallo are all still injured.

Jadon Sancho is still banished following a bust-up with Ten Hag.

Kick-off at Old Trafford is at 8.15pm.

Your #MUNCHE team news is in! #MUFC || #PL

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) December 6, 2023

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Speaking at the pre-match press conference ahead of tonight’s Premier League clash with Chelsea, the boss faced a barrage of questions about a perceived bad culture at United.

First, he was asked what he could do about the cycle that has repeated itself with several managers since Sir Alex Ferguson that sees a good first season followed by a poor one punctuated by rumours of dressing room disharmony. Does he fear for his job?

“There will be always tough times in every journey. We are in the right direction. We will get there where we want to be,” he replied.

“Because, see my record. Everywhere I was, every season, I got my targets.

“So if we stick together, if we stick to the plan and the strategy, we will get there where we want to be.”

He was then asked “when fans see highly paid players like Anthony Martial not trying, does there come a point when you just say ‘you’re out of the team’, even if it means bringing someone in from the youth team?”

Ten Hag replied “But Anthony Martial played brilliant against Everton. I don’t think it’s fair to point to one player.

“If you have one moment, you can’t make it as a pattern. If the week before we play brilliant, a lot of energy in the team and two games a lot of energy in the team and spirit, if it was a pattern it’s different, yeah, but this is not a pattern this season, absolutely not.

“Everyone is giving their best, there is unity as a team.”

Asked about whether he should abandon the man marking system employed against Newcastle, Ten Hag replied:

“No, no, I don’t want to play man marking. That’s the wrong idea.

“On a certain point we play man marking when we’re fully depressed but we play zonal and only in this game, because we didn’t cooperate, then it looks like it’s man marking, but I don’t want to play man marking, it’s totally false idea.”

Asked if he thinks there are still elements of a “no-good culture” at United, the manager replied:

“You talk in your article about one source, that’s a joke, so I won’t reflect it, on that. When you play one bad performance, you can’t [say] the culture is no good.”

Kick off at Old Trafford tonight is at 8.15pm.

Source: manutd.com.

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Last time out, United looked devoid of passion, application and focus as they slumped to a miserable 1-0 defeat to Newcastle United.

It would be surprising if manager Erik ten Hag doesn’t ring the changes after that match and in particular rest certain players whose body language and tracking back left the most to be desired.

In defence, the centre backs Luke Shaw and Harry Maguire did little wrong but the full backs were extremely poor. Sergio Reguilon immediately improved matters when he came on for Aaron Wan-Bissaka and if Shaw stays at centre back, Reguilon could get a start against the Blues.

Alternatively, in the ongoing absence of Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane’s condemnation to the bench, Victor Lindelof could be brought back in with Shaw returning to the left back role.

It was hard to choose who was the worst between Wan-Bissaka and Diogo Dalot in Sunday’s parade of incompetent full-backs, but as the former was the first to be hauled off, Dalot could have done just enough to regain the right back spot.

In midfield, Kobbie Mainoo was not as effective against the Magpies as he had been against Everton a week before but probably did enough to keep his place. However, his midfield partner, Scott McTominay, was the invisible man.

Sofyan Amrabat brought the level up a notch when he came on in the second half and might be finally finding his feet in the Premier League. We are therefore tipping him for a start alongside Mainoo, with McTominay dropping to the bench.

Another option could be Mason Mount, who is back in training, but this match will probably come to soon for other injured midfielders, Casemiro and Christian Eriksen.

Whatever is going on with Marcus Rashford, it will surely have finally led to withdrawal from the starting XI after an abject performance at St James’ Park. Alejandro Garnacho is almost certain to keep his place on the left wing and, like Amrabat, Antony was showing signs of improvement when coming on as sub, so we think he will start on the right.

Facu Pellistri is another option. Mount, too, could play on the right if fit, or he (or Hannibal) could fill the number 10 role with Bruno Fernandes moving wide right.

Jadon Sancho is still exiled from the first team squad and Amad Diallo is still injured.

Up front, despite a goal against Everton from Anthony Martial and a lack of any Premier League goals at all from Rasmus Hojlund, the difference between the two in terms of effort this season is like night and day. Hojlund will surely start as Ten Hag looks to field 11 players who want to fight for him and have a positive attitude.

With all that in mind, here is our predicted XI for tomorrow’s game:

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It has happened with every manager since Sir Alex Ferguson and every manager recruited under Glazer ownership at Manchester United.

Players’ dedication and commitment to the club is questioned over and again. This week, presumably in an effort to rectify this glaring issue, a story broke that the minority shareholder in waiting, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, intends to return United to a policy of promoting home-grown talent.

Instilling the club’s DNA from an early age, the theory goes, is surely something that will foster a fighting spirit, loyalty, commitment to bleed for the badge and, ultimately, togetherness.

It all sounds logical until you identify some of the main defendants accused of laziness, disinterest and a lack of spirit.

The main culprit of late is surely Marcus Rashford, a home-grown talent.

Another to have been accused of the same on more than one occasion this season is Scott McTominay, another home-grown talent. His failure to track Bruno Guimaraes on Saturday was one of many examples this season.

In recent years, Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard have been accused of the same and, although it’s not quite the same story, the less said about Mason Greenwood, the better.

Dean Henderson practically went on strike because of his desperation to leave the club.

In fact, so many academy graduates have got “above themselves” that there is an argument for doing the opposite to what Sir Jim is planning, and keeping academy stars as far away from the first team as possible. They seem to be the flakiest prima donnas of all.

Over the years, names that spring to mind when you think of United’s greatest warriors, who would spill blood, sometimes literally, for the club, are the Bryan Robsons, the Roy Keanes, Nemanja Vidic, Steve Bruce. None of these came through the academy.

Yes, there have also been one or two home-grown, but the point is, whatever it is that makes a player a proud warrior, it does not seem to be this fictitious “DNA” that everyone – Ten Hag included – likes to bleat on about.

After 14 years of seeing sulking and apathetic performances that insult the fans, the badge and the memory of the great United teams of the past, enough is enough. Let’s not pretend there is a United DNA any more. The only DNA that runs through the club nowadays is Lithuanian-American by way of Wall Street.

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Speaking about manager Erik Ten Hag, McCoist said:

“He’s an intelligent man. He knows he’s got a problem if he gets that level of performance from Manchester United again.

“That was miles off it. Absolutely miles off it.

“It’s a horrible thing to level at a professional football player, when you’re questioning commitment, and a desire to run about. But that’s the question you’ve got to ask of some of those Manchester United players.”

The interviewer asked the pair whether they think the players are not playing for Ten Hag.

“Tonight there were signs,” said Jenas.

“There was a couple of players in there … that either wasn’t happy with the tactics that were put to them, or wasn’t happy with their positions on the pitch.

“The body language of a team says a lot at times and there was a few of them sending a message to the manager.

“I thought Marcus Rashford on that right hand side in particular, the way he just walked around, throwing his arms around was one … that said ‘look, I don’t want to be playing on this right hand side.’

“No tracking back … he seems to be a disciplinarian off the pitch, Ten Hag, but I didn’t see that same level of respect on the pitch today.”

Jenas went on to say that the next round of fixtures could see a lot more disappointment for United and he expects them to be knocked out of the Champions League by Bayern Munich.

Often, pundits like nothing more than to lay into United but these two said probably what most United fans were thinking after the Newcastle game.

On Wednesday at Galatasaray we saw a team fighting hard, only to be undone by some individual errors. But at St James’ Park, it was hard to see anything other than apathy and laziness from the men in red.

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Many of the criticisms may be valid, but at what point do we start asking, David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, José Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and even Ralf Rangnick have been and gone. Ten Hag could soon follow. Can they all be this bad? What is the common denominator?

Former executive vice chairman Ed Woodward got plenty of the blame but things have not improved one iota since he left. And the players have totally changed in that time … so who or what is to blame?

We were all (rightly) appalled at Cristiano Ronaldo’s decision to wash his dirty linen on the Piers Morgan show, but, let’s face it, a lot of what he said is relevant. How are world class players expected to feel motivated when they turn up to a training ground that hasn’t been upgraded in 20 years, play in a stadium which is delapidated and listen to angry fans protesting and chanting Glazers Out all the time?

If you are an ambitious footballer wanting to win trophies, it must be hard knowing there’s no money for new transfers and seeing your squad being bolstered by desperate loans for the likes of Odion Ighalo, Wout Weghorst, Marcel Sabitzer, Sofyan Amrabat and Sergio Reguilon. These are not new recruits to the army, they are mercenaries, guns for hire … this does not help build for the future.

The club is now rotten to the core and at this point, the (Red) Devil will certainly be in the detail of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s impending investment deal.

If Ratcliffe’s agreement does not provide a clear way of assuming total control within a reasonable amount of time, and instead serves to prop up Glazer ownership, then it is hard to see how anything can improve.

If there is no clear path to rebuilding the stadium and Carrington, Old Trafford’s iconic “fortress” reputation can never return.

If Joel Glazer still has to sign off on transfers and new contracts, that process will be as painfully slow and ill-informed as ever and the club will continue to make poor choices and miss opportunities, time after time.

If the FFP issues are not resolved – which have come about through a lack of owner investment – and we return to the days when United were among the top three biggest spenders on transfers in the world, then Manchester United will remain a Europa League, upper-mid-table Premier League side, at best, for years to come.

Nobody is exonerating the players for some of these recent performances and yesterday, the attitude of many in the team was terrible. Of course they must play their part and take responsibility and do better.

Ten Hag, too.

But let’s face it. Overall, United are probably about as good as they can be given the hand with which they’ve been dealt. Mourinho famously commented that getting United to second in the Premier League was one of his greatest achievements in football, and that is probably true. A complete exorcism is needed at this point, or “open heart surgery”, as another former boss, Ralf Rangnick, put it.

For things to change, a complete reboot from the top down is needed and this Ratcliffe announcement – if it ever comes – is set to be the single biggest turning point in the club’s history since Sir Alex Ferguson retired. It simply has to be done in a way that provides the antidote to the poison that is killing our beloved club.

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It was a dull performance from the Red Devils, many of whom did not look motivated or focused, making life easy all too often for the home side.

Here are three things we learned about United over the course of the 90 minutes’ action at St James’ Park.

1. A new right back must be a priority in the next transfer window.

There have been many debates among United fans about which of Diogo Dalot and Aaron Wan-Bissaka is the better defender. With Luke Shaw moved to centre back, this was an opportunity to compare the pair in real time and the answer was clear: neither is good enough for Manchester United.

Both full backs got stranded out of position all too often, leaving the likes of Bruno Fernandes to have to track back to cover on multiple occasions. Wan-Bissaka could be seen trotting back when losing possession, earning himself a b—–ing from Harry Maguire, while Dalot nearly scored the most peculiar own goal when he appeared to chip Andre Onana, who had come out to collect the ball. Both were way off their man for Newcastle’s goal.

Neither offered anything going forward and Newcastle’s wingers ran riot for most of the match. Wan-Bissaka’s great goalline block was only necessary because he was 30 yards out of position in the build up, leaving Newcastle a free run down the right wing.

2. We really have to start believing Harry Maguire has turned it around

OK there were some frustrated, clumsy fouls and an unnecessary booking but on a day of dreaful performances, once again Maguire can hold his head high. He has not been perfect but he has been pretty solid and consistent for several weeks now.

In the land of the blind, the one eyed man is king. In a defence as shambolic as this, Harry has to be the first name on the team sheet right now. How times have changed. Can it be trusted? How long will it last? Let’s hope it’s the real thing.

3. Marcus Rashford needs a spell on the sidelines

There were plenty of “lazy” performances as Paul Scholes put it after the game, but Rashford’s has to have been the worst of all. His tracking back was non-existent and his all-round game was just poor.

Rashford is a big name and he carried United for much of last season, but his form is probably the worst it has ever been right now and a spell on the sidelines or even a run out with the Under 21’s might be good for him as he attempts a reset in time for the second half of the season.

A week that started so well with a convincing 3-0 victory over Everton has turned quite sour for Erik ten Hag’s men and they will certainly need to show more fighting spirit against Chelsea in their next game on Wednesday.

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Anthony Martial starts in the centre forward position, flanked by Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford, who comes in for Antony after being suspended in Europe in midweek.

Kobbie Mainoo once again starts in midfield and comes in in place of Sofyan Amrabat, who returns to the bench. Scott McTominay partners him.

Elsewhere, Victor Lindelof is dropped, with Luke Shaw starting at left centre back and Diogo Dalot coming in at left back.

Andre Onana, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Harry Maguire keep their places at goalkeeper, right back and right centre-back, respectively.

Bruno Fernandes is in the number 10 position.

The substitutes bench includes Lindelof, Amrabat, Antony and Hojlund, Altay Bayindir, Sergio Reguilon, Raphael Varane, Donny van de Beek and Facu Pellistri.

The fact that Lindelof is on the bench could mean that the decision is tactical rather than due to injury, suggesting that the manager has lost faith in the Swede despite keeping three consecutive clean sheets in the Premier League.

It is also a further snub to five-time Champions League winner and World Cup winner Raphael Varane, who continues on the bench despite the Maguire-Lindelof partnership being broken up.

Lisandro Martinez, Tyrell Malacia, Jonny Evans, Casemiro, Christian Eriksen, Mason Mount and Amad Diallo are all injured while Jadon Sancho remains banished.

There is no place in the squad for Hannibal this time.

¡Once confirmado!

Así formaremos ante Newcastle.#MUFC #NEWMUN

— Manchester United (@ManUtd_Es) December 2, 2023

Kick-off at St James’ Park is at 8pm.

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There is a question mark over Andre Onana’s position after three howlers against Galatasaray on Wednesday almost surely condemned United to Europa League football – at best – this season.

However, Ten Hag’s comments at yesterday’s press conference suggest he will stick by the Cameroonian, at least for the time being.

Right back is always a hard one to predict when both Diogo Dalot and Aaron Wan-Bissaka are fit. The Englishman was chosen against Gala but Dalot played last weekend.

The fact is that Ten Hag views Wan-Bissaka as the better player defensively but when a team ships three goals, albeit from goalkeeping errors, then a defensive shake-up might be called for. We are predicting Dalot’s return for that reason, but it’s a toss up.

Likewise Wednesday’s indisciplined performance could leave a question mark over the Harry Maguire-Victor Lindelof partnership, especially as the world class Raphael Varane has been waiting in the wings for a return. But it is expected that Ten Hag will stick by the long-established partnership against Newcastle.

Luke Shaw is the only member of the defence who looks almost certain to keep his place.

Lisandro Martinez and Tyrell Malacia are still long term injuries.

In midfield, another really disappointing performance from the struggling Sofyan Amrabat should mean that Kobbie Mainoo is recalled after his excellent performance against Everton on his Premier League debut last week. He will almost certainly partner Scott McTominay as the rest of the midfield options are unavailable.

Casemiro, Christian Eriksen and Mason Mount are all injured. Mount is back in training but Ten Hag hinted that he would not be ready in time.

With Donny van de Beek having one foot out of the club, it’s bare bones unless Bruno Fernandes is brought into a deeper role, which has an outside chance of happening.

Up front, Antony returned against Gala and did reasonably well. Marcus Rashford will be fresh after missing that game through suspension. It could be that Alejandro Garnacho is rested for this one despite being hands down United’s best winger in recent games. This would simply be for protection as playing too many games at a young age could lead to problems.

Rasmus Hojlund is expected to start up front as he looks for his first Premier League goal.

With all that in mind, here is our predicted XI for tonight’s 8pm kick-off:

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The manager said:

“I think so [that his side are playing as the fans would want], if you see the goals we’ve scored recently. In Copenhagen, at Everton, on Wednesday, in Istanbul, we scored some very good collective goals The fact of having a good plan, of giving creativity to the players in the positions where they perform best, allowed us to score some very good goals:”

United’s last match was a disappointing 3-3 draw with Galatasaray in Istanbul on Wednesday. Twice in the game United squandered a two-goal lead, mostly due to poor goalkeeping by Andre Onana.

When questioned at the press conference whether Onana would be dropped for the last Champions League match, he said “No”.

“It’s obvious, he has the potential.”

The reporter said it might help Onana to be taken out of the team, to which Ten Hag replied “No, it won’t happen”.

“I have trust in Tom [Heaton] and Altay [Bayindir], clear. But Andre, you see it once again, [he is] after Alisson in [terms of] preventing the most expected goals from the whole league.

“He was in Champions League, so much experience, with Ajax, with Inter Milan last year he was in the Champions League after Neuer, Courtois, he was the best keeper.”

“He is a great keeper and he has the potential so we have to work on him, [so] that he is doing that consistently and we will work with him. The manager, the coaches, and also the players they support him.”

Asked if he is undroppable, Ten Hag insisted “of course not, no-one is undroppable. That is also clear. We believe and we have a strong belief that he will help us win trophies.”

Asked if the Cameroonian would leave for the Africa Cup of Nations in January, the manager replied:

“So when they call him, he has to go. But we are in talks”.

Earlier this year Ten Hag made comments about tomorrow’s opponents, Newcastle, being “annoying” with their time-wasting and he was asked to elaborate on that ahead of tomorrow’s match.

“I didn’t say that. The time-wasting: I made that point, clear. The term ‘annoying’ was positive for them,” he said.

“It is a really difficult team to play, so I meant it in a very positive way. I said it out of respect for how they are doing. They are physical, they have a very good transition and very good organisation in the pressing.

“They are doing a great job there and I like to play against them.”

Ten Hag was then asked about Marcus Rashford’s future given that Alejandro Garnacho has nailed down the left wing role.

“Didn’t you see our games?” he replied. “They were both in the team against Copenhagen and Everton.”

“Rashy can play from the right and he likes to play from the right. But he can also play through in the middle, and also from the left, so he is really motivated,” he replied.

Ten Hag also confirmed that “Donny has to play” when asked if Van de Beek would be allowed to leave the club in summer. More on that story on The Peoples Person tomorrow.

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