Anthony Martial’s return could be a big boost for Manchester United, as they have been a bit short in that department recently.
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Manchester United players responded well to the humiliating defeat suffered against Liverpool by easing past Real Betis 4-1 in the first leg of the Europa League round of 16 on Thursday. The 7-0 loss to old foes Liverpool last weekend was received with a major shock, as present and former players were not able to believe the manner in which United had collapsed in the second half. With the alarm bells ringing, the Red Devils responded brilliantly to overcome Betis 4-1 on Thursday night.
United will now hope to carry that momentum into the Premier League and cement the third spot in the table. Ahead of this clash, United have received a major boost with the injury situation of Anthony Martial. During a pre-match press conference, manager Erik ten Hag was asked if Martial could play at the weekend. He replied, “Yeah, but I think, all the time, we had a good plan and until now it [didn’t] always [work well]. But he is on his way back, he is back in training, but we will be cautious, yeah.”
Anthony Martial’s return could be a big boost for Manchester United, as they have been a bit short in that department recently. It is one of the reasons why January loan signing Wout Weghorst is playing up front frequently. However, it will be highly unlikely to see Martial start the game on Sunday. There is a good possibility he could come on from the bench in the second half as a substitute. Besides, United supporters also got an update regarding the injury situation of Christian Eriksen.
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In a FA Cup fourth-round victory over Reading, Eriksen had earlier suffered an ankle injury following a dangerous challenge by Andy Carroll. When asked if Eriksen has a chance of playing again this season, ten Hag replied, “I think he [Eriksen] will play [again in 2022/23]. Definitely. But I can’t tell now an expectation, but I think his progress in the rehab is okay. It is going according to plan, so definitely we will see him. But not before the international break.”
Wout Weghorst has received a lot of criticism lately for his lean patch in front of the goal. For a while it looked as if that poor run was going to continue for him on Thursday too, as Weghorst missed couple of good opportunities. However, late in the game, he finally found the back of the net – his first at Old Trafford. Speaking about him, ten Hag said, “I think, as you see, he is often in the right position, then he fails. But he keeps going. So, he showed great personality and character so not only in this game – I think also in this game, he could have already [got] his goal early on, but he keeps focused, he keeps working and he keeps putting himself in the right positions. And, finally, he got his goal and his reward.”
