We’re just hours away from Manchester United hosting Middlesbrough in the Football League Cup round of 16. Although this is just the League Cup, it’s still a chance to move towards accomplishing a trophy; something that hasn’t happened in the Louis van Gaal era yet.
Man United’s chances of eventually winning the tournament went up yesterday, with the elimination of both Arsenal and Chelsea.
Here’s the link to our Man United starting XI prediction for this one. Van Gaal is concerned about the fatigue level of his players right now.
“I have a lot of players in the red zone, because we have had a lot of matches and we have a lot of matches to play,” Van Gaal told the Guardian. “I have to see if I can use them or not. We need all the days to recover at this moment.”
“I think Middlesbrough is a good playing side. They want to play football, that is also a benefit for us, I think. You can also see teams with another play style and that is more difficult for us, but we can play football against them but it is also dependable of the strategy their team.”
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and sometimes writes The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. The website is also featured on News Now.
Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes to the Chicago Tribune RedEye. He also appears regularly on numerous television and radio talk shows all across the country. Catch him Tuesdays on KOZN 1620 The Zone.
Follow him on Twitter and Instagram