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Pundit Predictions: Will Dorgu start?
Friday 07 February 2025 12:27
Ruben Amorim seeks to continue Manchester United’s march back towards Wembley in the Emirates FA Cup on Friday night, and he has two new signings available for selection.
Will the boss give debuts to either Patrick Dorgu or Ayden Heaven, or both, and who might come in for the injured Lisandro Martinez? These are the key questions up for debate ahead of the 20:00 GMT kick-off against Leicester City, managed by Reds great Ruud van Nistelrooy.
Ahead of an Old Trafford night under the lights, we’ve been playing our popular United Predictions game alongside MUTV pundits Wes Brown and Danny Simpson, who won six Premier League titles between them in their careers. Join in guessing who will replace Licha, whether Ruben might give a starting spot to either of his new options and who might start up front after Kobbie Mainoo’s impressive recent displays in attacking positions.
Predict Ruben’s starting XI, the scoreline, first goalscorer and your Man of the Match, and you’ll have the chance to win great prizes.
Will United fans at Old Trafford get the chance to see a debut on Friday evening? Well, two-time Champions League winner Wes Brown thinks so! He’s expecting a first start for Dorgu, whose move from Lecce was announced five days ago.
Check out his full predictions below before making your own…
WES BROWN’S PREDICTIONS
United XI: Onana; De Ligt, Maguire, Yoro; Amad, Ugarte, Fernandes, Dorgu; Mainoo, Hojlund, Garnacho.
Score: United 2-0 Leicester
First scorer: Bruno Fernandes
Man of the Match: Bruno Fernandes
Wes is predicting changes in both wing-back positions from Amorim. As well as Dorgu coming in for his first appearance, he thinks Amad will play in the right wing-back position ahead of either Noussair Mazraoui or Diogo Dalot.
Those are two of four changes Brown is expecting. He thinks Matthijs de Ligt will replace the injured Martinez in defence, with Leny Yoro filling the left-centre-back berth, Harry Maguire maintaining his central spot and De Ligt starting on the right of the three.
Up front, Wes thinks Rasmus Hojlund will return to the side, supported by Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho. Bruno Fernandes, he says, will play in midfield, and have a significant role. Wes has him down to score the game’s first goal and be named Man of the Match.
DANNY SIMPSON’S PREDICTIONS
United XI: Onana; Maguire, De Ligt, Yoro; Dalot, Collyer, Eriksen, Dorgu; Amad, Garnacho, Hojlund.
Score: United 3-0 Leicester
First scorer: Amad
Man of the Match: Amad
Danny Simpson also backs Dorgu to start against Leicester, and he’s anticipating quite a few changes to Amorim’s line-up.
Danny thinks tonight might see club captain Fernandes rested, with a midfield of Toby Collyer and Christian Eriksen sitting behind Amad and Garnacho, with Hojlund leading the line.
That team will lead us to a comfortable 3-0 victory, Simpson thinks, with a starring role from Amad, who has been a key contributor for us over the last months.
WILL DORGU START?
Well, let’s take a look at what Ruben had to say on our exciting new signing.
“He has to integrate really fast because we lose some players on loan in this moment,” he began, in our exclusive pre-match interview.
Ruben’s Q&A: Leicester (H) Video
Ruben’s Q&A: Leicester (H)
You’re not ready for United v Leicester until you’ve caught up with Ruben Amorim and Ruud van Nistelrooy…
“We want to build a different team. We start with these different kinds of players like Dorgu. He’s a young player, of course he’s going to need time because this is a different level, a different league, but the physicality is there, the quality is there and he can play both sides. That is important, to cope whether we want to play on the left or the right, that is really important for us. He’s a talented, hungry guy, and that is the profile we’re looking for.”
And in his pre-match press conference, conducted on Thursday lunchtime, Ruben said both Dorgu and Heaven “are ready to play and they are two more solutions to help us in this moment.”
PLAY UNITED PREDICTIONS
Make your own picks in our United Predictions game now.
You have until 18:45 GMT to select your starting XI, and you can make your picks for first scorer, result and Man of the Match right up until kick-off.
With amazing prizes – including signed shirts and United Store vouchers – on offer, what are you waiting for? Get involved now!
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Friday 07 February 2025 12:27
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