BUILD-UP
Aston Villa begin their 21/22 FA Cup journey as they visit Manchester United at Old Trafford in the third round.
This fixture will be the second time these teams have met this season with Villa beating the Red Devils by a goal to nil at the ‘Theatre of Dreams‘ earlier this season. A late Kortney Hause winner was the difference between the sides and even later mind games from ‘keeper Emiliano Martinez helped to unsettle Bruno Fernandes from 12 yards and secure the victory.
This win was the first time Aston Villa had got the better of United in the league since December 2009, and is therefore a result that will live long in the memory of many of the Villa faithful, particularly the 3000 claret and blues fans in the away end that day.
This game poses a different spectacle however as both teams boast a new Manager in Steven Gerrard and Ralf Rangnick, and so the game will be completely different to the previous affair.
Both teams come into the game on the back of losses in the league, with the hosts seeing defeat against Bruno Lage’s Wolves by a goal to nil, and the visitors collapsing to a 2-1 away loss to Thomas Frank’s Brentford last time out.
With Steven Gerrard declaring his team’s readiness and desire to proceed to the next round of the competition, saying “We’ll go there with the strongest possible team we’ve got available to try and get the best result we can.” , it certainly goes without saying that the Head Coach and his squad of players will be prepared and in the best shape possible to pull off an upset.
Villa have not gone beyond this stage in the FA Cup since the 15/16 season after beating Wycombe Wanderers 2-0 in the fixture’s replay at Villa Park thanks to goals from Idrissa ‘Gana’ Gueye and Ciaran Clark. The Villans crashed out in the round to follow as they were comfortably beaten 4-0 by Manchester City.
Gerrard will hope to get the better of his old rivals and will look to break the poor record that his new club has in the FA Cup over the last six years. The Head Coach won two FA Cups in his time at Liverpool and will know exactly what it takes to put together a successful cup run.
Can he lead us to silverware for the first time since 1996, or will we crash out in the early stages once again?
TEAM NEWS
Steven Gerrard announced “We’ve come through Brentford with no major injuries” in the latest press conference, and with that, the players that traveled to the capital on Sunday will all be available for next Monday’s clash with Manchester United.
Of course, the FA Cup typically allows for rotation within the side, and so we may see a number of youngsters involved in the tie including players such as Philogene-Bidace, Cameron Archer and Carney Chukwuemeka.
Aston Villa also welcomed back Louie Barry, Arjan Raikhy, Brad Young and Dominic Revan from their respective loans due to a lack of match minutes this season, and whilst we are likely to see them all appear in the U23 setup, we could also see them occasionally feature in first-team match-day squads, and possibly the upcoming game at Old Trafford.
In terms of welcoming players back from injury/illness, top scorer Ollie Watkins is expected to return to the side after missing the defeat at Brentford for what was assumed to be COVID reasons. Gerrard said: “Ollie Watkins is due back with the group on Saturday, so that will be a welcome addition.” The striker has five goals to his name this season and will be looking at making an instant impact on his return to the squad (if picked).
Captain Tyrone Mings is also available for selection again after missing the last game through suspension (accumulation of five yellow cards), and his Head Coach had the following to say about his return to the side: “Tyrone Mings comes back from suspension – he’s fit, well and available.”
Trezeguet and Bertrand Traore have both traveled to Cameroon for this year’s African Cup of Nations (AFCON), and will be missing for the foreseeable future, with the tournament lasting until February 6th. Traore will appear in the opening game of the competition on Sunday, as his Burkino Faso side play the hosts Cameroon. Trezeguet plays his first game up against Nigeria next Tuesday as his Egypt side, featuring Mohammed Salah, look to get off to the best possible start.
Steven Gerrard describes Ashley Young’s possible involvement as having “an outside chance”, as the 36 year-old aims to return back to Old Trafford in the claret and blue colours of Aston Villa. Young is suffering from a fractured toe in which he feels some discomfort but the number 18 is “doing everything he can to get back as quick as he can.”.
In Thursday’s press conference, Gerrard updated the media on Leon Bailey’s condition, saying “He’s good, he’s working hard. We’re four and a bit weeks post-injury and he’s progressing well, stepping up his rehab as the days go by. He’s focused on getting back in the best possible way.” It was initially expected that Bailey would return to action at the end of December, but his ongoing muscle injury has remained persistent and his time on the sidelines had thus been extended.
There does not seem to be any current issues regarding positive COVID tests at the club, but of course the situation could change dramatically at any point between now and Monday’s game. Let’s hope players and staff from both sides test negative and the game can go ahead with everyone available for the fixture.
As for the opposition’s injury news, Ralf Rangnick is looking to welcome back centre-back pairing of captain Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof. Maguire missed the defeat to Wolves through an acute chest injury suffered through “a blow to the chest in the 3-1 win over Burnley.”, whilst Lindelof’s absence is down to COVID.
United will lose defender Eric Bailly and youngster Hannibal Mejbri to AFCON for their respective nations of Cote D’ivoire and Tunisia, and will of course be unavailable for this fixture and the ones to follow this month.
Paul Pogba will miss the game with an injury sustained whilst on international duty with France last year, and despite picking up a yellow card in the Wolves game, taking their season tally to five, both Scott McTominay and Luke Shaw are available for selection, as the suspension does not carry into the domestic cup competitions. This does mean the pair will miss the league game at Villa Park next Saturday though, which will be welcomed news for Steven Gerrard ahead of that game.
Aside from these few absentees, Rangnick can assemble a team from his star-studded squad, with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford all in the mix for a start.
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THE OPPOSITION
Manchester United have suffered quite a disappointing 21/22 campaign so far as they currently sit in 7th place in the Premier League, four points off Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal who occupy the final UEFA Champions League place in 4th.
The Red Devils did of course start the season with club legend Ole Gunnar Solskjær in charge, but after a poor run of form in the league and displeasing results against rivals Liverpool and Man City, the Norwegian’s time at the club came to an end, with his final game being the 4-1 defeat to Watford at Vicarage Road. Solskjær was sacked the next day, and the United board looked for his replacement immediately.
Michael Carrick stepped up from his role as Assistant Manager for a run of games before the appointment of Ralf Rangnick spelled the end of his time at Manchester United on 29th November. The German-born boss is contracted as the interim Manager of the club until the end of the season, giving the board til the summer to whey up their options and make the tough decision as to who they want at the helm of the club.
Rangnick is a household name for fans of the Bundesliga, and is often referred to as one of the architects in modern-day German football, influencing the likes of Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp and Chelsea’s Thomas Tuchel.
The term ‘Gegenpressing‘, is a style of play thought to have been established by Rangnick during and through his time at clubs such as 1889 Hoffenheim, Schalke 04 and RB Lepizig. Klopp is believed to have built on this work and brought it to England after his successful spell at Borussia Dortmund.
‘Gegenpressing‘ involves aggressive but co-ordinated pressure from the forward, midfield and versatile defensive players in order to cause mistakes from opponents and ultimately win the ball back quickly and effectively. The style of play is well-structured and fast-paced, and if it works successfully, can be a pleasure to watch.
The method primarily involves quick, forward passing with an emphasis on attacking movement and transitioning the ball up the pitch with a degree of urgency. The ultimate objective is to catch the opposition out, giving them very little time to play when in possession and deny/defend when out of possession.
The Manchester United board believed Rangnick’s ‘Gegenpressing‘ style would be a good fit for the group of players at their disposal, and whilst there was plenty of excitement surrounding the appointment from the United fans, there was also a lot of hesitation due to Rangnick’s lack of experience and know-how in the Premier League, and the fast-paced tempo that already exists within the English game.
The standout concern was that Rangnick’s philosophy would be somewhat lost or wasted due to the speed at which football in the league is played at consistently week in, week out – his ‘Gegenpressing‘ style of play simply wouldn’t be effective.
And this, at times, has been the case. The players do not seem as if they have completely adjusted to Rangnick’s methods and ideologies just yet, and lack that footballing identity at the moment. Of course, it is still early days for the German as he has only been in charge for just over a month, and managed just five competitive games.
Rangnick and his Reds are looking to bounce back from his first defeat in charge and hope to kick start their FA Cup campaign with a win. If United were to succeed in doing so, and continue through to win the competition, it would add to their illustrious trophy cabinet containing 42 trophies, only beaten by Liverpool who boast 43.
Manchester United have won the FA Cup twelve times throughout their history, more than any other team bar Arsenal (13), but will be hopeful they can tie with the Gunners come the end of the competition.
Can Rangnick get back to winning ways and progress his Manchester United team to the fourth round of the FA Cup, or will they suffer back to back defeats for the first time since the new Head Coach’s appointment?
FINAL THOUGHTS
Cup games are always a tough one to predict as the lineups are so up in the air in the lead-up and with ‘the magic of the cup’, you simply never know what to expect. But with Steven Gerrard hinting at picking a strong team and liking the prospect of a lengthy cup run, I believe he will go full strength and look to hurt Manchester United.
Gerrard is a serial winner and wants to be successful at every thing he does, he will see no game as a let-up for his players and will demand and expect maximum effort regardless of the size of the opponent or type of competition. His past rivalry with the Red Devils may be an added incentive for the former Liverpool man to win this game, but the Head Coach is aware of the threat that Rangnick’s side poses and expects “a really tough game” despite the underwhelming season Man United are having.
Rangnick certainly has the squad capable of winning any game with quality players all over the team, and standout name Cristiano Ronaldo leading the line for them. It will be a good old-fashioned tactical battle – and I for one cannot wait!
I would certainly be less confident/optimistic if United’s form wasn’t what it is, and if we hadn’t already beaten them at Old Trafford this season, but I am also aware it is a completely different occasion and challenge for the team. I usually remain positive and upbeat with these final thoughts and predictions, and I will do so again and go with a 2-1 victory courtesy of a Tyrone Mings header and late Emi Buendia winner.
I don’t care how we do it, I would just love us to win this one; the prospect of beating United twice at Old Trafford in a season is incredible, as is the idea of a long and successful cup run.
Come on the boys and Up the Villa!
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Liam Davies
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