Introduction
Manchester United will take to the pitch on Saturday against non-league Crawley on Saturday with more than one eye on the resumption of their Champions League campaign next Wednesday against Marseille.
This tie is almost the perfect one for the Reds as it will allow the manager to rotate the team once more and ensure that the key players are well rested and focused on the task that awaits them in the Stade Vélodrome. It will also mean that the squad players will get some valuable match time as the team prepares for their busy schedule in the coming months.
There is also an outside chance that certain members of the FA Youth Cup team may be drafted into the match day squad following their victory against Newcastle on Wednesday evening. In my view the best that one or two could hope for is a place on the bench though it would be an exciting move to have the likes of King, Pogba, Morrison and Tunnicliffe involved in some capacity.
Both teams are nicknamed the Red Devils although Crawley have been called this since their formation in 1896 whereas Manchester United only came into existence in April 1902 after the name change from Newton Heath. The Red Devils nickname started to be used in the 1960's after Matt Busby heard it in connection with the Salford rugby league club. The devil was incorporated into the United club badge in 1970.
Both teams are nicknamed the Red Devils although Crawley have been called this since their formation in 1896 whereas Manchester United only came into existence in April 1902 after the name change from Newton Heath. The Red Devils nickname started to be used in the 1960's after Matt Busby heard it in connection with the Salford rugby league club. The devil was incorporated into the United club badge in 1970.
The Opposition
Crawley Town currently lie second in the Blue Square Bet Premier table with a haul of 61 points from their 28 games, trailing only AFC Wimbledon.
The underdogs go into the game unbeaten in their last 12 games, having won 3 and drawn 3 of their last six in all competitions. Their away form is decent having only lost once on their travels and will come to Old Trafford with nothing to lose.
Their dream FA Cup run began back on 23rd October in a qualifying round against Newport County. Since then Guiseley, Swindon (after replay and Extra Time), Derby and Torquay have all been dispatched by the non-leaguers in their run to the 5th round.
Some would describe Crawley as the Manchester City of the non league arena. New owners have come in, cleared around £1.4m of debt and have spent big snapping up the best talent. To say they are unpopular in their league is an understatement.
Another reason for this unpopularity is their manager Steve Evans who will be overseeing his 200th game managing Crawley since joining from Boston United in May 2007.
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| Crawley manager Steve Evans and "friends" |
Since being forced into early retirement as a player in his mid twenties, he has had a controversial career as a manager. Various misdemeanors include being suspended by the FA for "contract irregularities" in 2002 and a further suspension and fine for other goings on at Boston. The most high profile was after pleading guilty to conspiracy to evade tax. On 3 November 2006, Evans received a one-year suspended sentence and a £1,000 fine. Numerous touchline bans have also been dished out to the fiery Scot who will hopefully be on his best behaviour at the Theatre of Dreams on Saturday teatime!
Crawley's key player is Matt Tubbs. Their top scorer has 28 goals (3 in the FA Cup) and was signed from Salisbury in August 2010. His two year deal was a club record fee believed to be around £70,000. The 26 year old began his career at Bolton but was unable to make an impression before moves to Dorchester and Salisbury helped to make his name at this level. His overall career record of 193 goals from 307 games is impressive and the United back line will not want to give him too many sights of goal.
United
Once again, predicting the United team will be very difficult. As mentioned earlier, thoughts will already be turning towards the meeting with Marseille and you can bet that Sir Alex will have already picked his preferred team for that game and then will decide on who best to select for this tie.
After making his debut in the previous round, I would expect Anders Lindegaard to be given a taste of the Old Trafford atmosphere unless the boss feels that Kuzscak needs a game. The Pole has been conspicuous by his absence over the last few weeks and it could be that he will be leaving in the summer and the boss wants to give some much needed experience to his new goal keeper.
The rest of the defence is likely to contain O'Shea, Brown, Evans and Fabio. If Rafael plays then it would suggest that he will not play next Wednesday. With Ferdinand still out and Vidic and Smalling penciled in for next week, there are very few other options available. Injury doubts over Evans and Fabio mean that a spot for a reserve or youth team player cannot be ruled out.
The midfield line up is once again very difficult to select. Surely a certainty is Darron Gibson who has not been seen in a red shirt since the poor performance against Southampton in the last round. The identity of his centre midfield partner comes down to a bit of guesswork and I am going to go for Anderson. Having gone off the boil a little recently in terms of performance, I would like to see him given a run out and told to stamp his authority on the non-league outfit. As he tends to struggle away from home, I would have him on the bench on Wednesday and play Scholes, Carrick and Fletcher.
On the wings I am going to go for Obertan and a rare start for Bebe. Both of these two need games and surely a match against this type of opposition is perfect for them to make their mark. If one or both struggle to impress then you would have to worry about their long term capability of holding down a place at Old Trafford.
Up front I am sure will be Javier Hernandez and I am going to have a punt at the full debut of Josh King alongside him. If Michael Owen had stayed fit then I am sure he would have started but the cupboard is pretty bare in forward areas with Berbatov and Rooney likely to be rested. This speedy partnership should cause Crawley no end of problems with their movement and if the service is good from the wide areas then United should be capable of a convincing victory.
Prediction
I am sure Crawley will enjoy their day regardless of the result and the tie is said to be adding around £1million to their bank balance. Their worst nightmare would be to concede an early goal and offer up the possibility of a high scoring defeat. No doubt they will get men behind the ball but they have shown on this cup run that they can play good football and the likes of Torres and Tubbs will have to be kept an eye on. However, one would hope that class will show in the end and United should progress without too much bother and I will predict 4-0 with goals from Hernandez (2), Obertan and Bebe.
Please leave a comment about anything written above in the space below and also you can follow me on Twitter
The midfield line up is once again very difficult to select. Surely a certainty is Darron Gibson who has not been seen in a red shirt since the poor performance against Southampton in the last round. The identity of his centre midfield partner comes down to a bit of guesswork and I am going to go for Anderson. Having gone off the boil a little recently in terms of performance, I would like to see him given a run out and told to stamp his authority on the non-league outfit. As he tends to struggle away from home, I would have him on the bench on Wednesday and play Scholes, Carrick and Fletcher.
On the wings I am going to go for Obertan and a rare start for Bebe. Both of these two need games and surely a match against this type of opposition is perfect for them to make their mark. If one or both struggle to impress then you would have to worry about their long term capability of holding down a place at Old Trafford.
Up front I am sure will be Javier Hernandez and I am going to have a punt at the full debut of Josh King alongside him. If Michael Owen had stayed fit then I am sure he would have started but the cupboard is pretty bare in forward areas with Berbatov and Rooney likely to be rested. This speedy partnership should cause Crawley no end of problems with their movement and if the service is good from the wide areas then United should be capable of a convincing victory.
Prediction
I am sure Crawley will enjoy their day regardless of the result and the tie is said to be adding around £1million to their bank balance. Their worst nightmare would be to concede an early goal and offer up the possibility of a high scoring defeat. No doubt they will get men behind the ball but they have shown on this cup run that they can play good football and the likes of Torres and Tubbs will have to be kept an eye on. However, one would hope that class will show in the end and United should progress without too much bother and I will predict 4-0 with goals from Hernandez (2), Obertan and Bebe.
Please leave a comment about anything written above in the space below and also you can follow me on Twitter
"if the service is good from the wide areas" That's a big IF.
ReplyDeleteSpot on! If King and Hernandez play then service will need to be to feet mainly, although the Mexican is excellent in the air
ReplyDeleteAs Anders Lindegaard said,"Before playing a match you don't wonder what will happen if you lose. You just think positively and it's the same on Saturday. Defeat is not an option".
ReplyDeleteSir Alex is confident saying,"It should be an interesting game. We've got good experience of playing sides like Crawley having played Burton Albion and Exeter".