Predicted Man United XI vs Tottenham Hotspur: Antony to be dropped

Erik ten Hag has to field his strongest team for the Carabao Cup semi final against Nottingham Forest, although it’s becoming less clear as to who belongs in that best team.

At the time of writing it’s unclear whether either Diogo Dalot or Anthony Martial will have recovered in time to feature. Of the two, Dalot is the more likely to be recalled to the starting lineup as his stand-in, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, did not play well against Arsenal on Sunday. By contrast, Martial’s deputy, Wout Weghorst, put in a very competent performance.

Another reason is that United need to get on the front foot against Forest and Dalot is much more able going forward than Wan-Bissaka.

However, as he has not yet returned to training it seems unlikely that he will be fit enough to start.

The rest of the defence is likely to remain unchanged too, despite shipping three goals to the Gunners.

Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez hardly put a foot wrong but were afforded no protection from midfield in Casemiro’s absence due to suspension.

He will certainly be recalled alongside Christian Eriksen, with Scott McTominay dropping back to the bench.

If Martial is fit, we expect him to start on the bench, but whether Weghorst is served by Antony again after yet another lacklustre performance at the Emirates remains to be seen.

One option is to switch Marcus Rashford to the right wing and start Alejandro Garnacho on the left, which seems the most likely.

Another possibility is for Fred to start in midfield and for Bruno Fernandes to be asked to put in another shift on the right wing.

Jadon Sancho is an outside possibility, having rejoined full team training, but with no match fitness he, too, is more likely to kick-start his comeback from the bench.

With all that in mind, here is our predicted XI for the semi-final, first leg: