Leicester v Man United, FA Cup QF: Red Devils injuries

Leicester City will host Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s Manchester United for the quarter-finals of the Emirates FA Cup at the King Power Stadium this Sunday.

The Foxes gave an impressive performance in their last match against Sheffield United, which saw Brendan Rodger’s men snatch a 5-0 victory quite dominantly. Kelechi Iheanacho scored a brilliant hat-trick, while Vardy registered two assists which installs a lot of positivity back into the side.

Clearly the East Midlands side are enjoying a two-week break from Premier League football but they need to be committed for their unfinished business with Manchester United for the FA Cup quarter-finals this weekend.

Importance of the FA Cup for Leicester City

Winning in the quarter-finals will take City to the semi-finals of the competition. Leicester supporters would want nothing more but their team to give United a run for their money, especially considering the fact that this is an all-familiar territory for the club. In due course of history, Leicester City has lost four FA Cup Finals; no other team has made it to the big game that many times without lifting the silverware once.

The opponents: Manchester United

Unlike City, United had to make a trip to San Siro to face AC Milan for their UEFA Europa League Round of 16 fixture yesterday, which United won to progress.

Manchester United made said trip without striker Edinson Cavani, who was dropped at the last moment indicating a possible discomfort. It is unknown at this point if Cavani will be available for the FA Cup tie, or if he needs some time to recover.

Veteran Juan Mata has missed quite a number of games and only featured for two minutes for United this calendar year. But he is now expected to make his return sometime in late March, so will miss the game against the Foxes.

Forward Antony Martial has suffered a knee injury which resulted in the striker missing the West Ham game in the Premier League. Defender Eric Bailly suffered a knock and is injured at the moment. Bailly was rested for the UEL clash against Milan.

The silver linings

Ahead of the contest, both sides have a few players making their returns to the squad after respective injuries.

Both Ayoze Perez and Jonny Evans made their returns against Sheffield United for Leicester City. Perez had a great game having scored a goal in an attacking midfielder role; the No.10 was again filled after both Maddison and Barnes succumbed to injuries. Also, Dennis Praet could be making a return in this game after being declared fit last week.

For the Red Devils, Goalkeeper David De Gea has returned after his personal absence, along with Paul Pogba and Donny van de Beek. Pogba was the difference-maker for United that saw them progress against AC Milan.

The last encounter between the two sides saw an even 2-2 draw. Whether you believe the teams equal or not, anticipation heightens with this surely promising to be an exciting meeting.