Newcastle United’s projected lineups and more vs. Manchester United
By Cade Cracas
Only one more day until the Carabao Cup Final, Newcastle United travels to Wembley Stadium to take on Manchester United.
Newcastle United, who have struggled in recent contests, will look to bounce back on one of the biggest stages to end a 20+ year drought of bringing home a Domestic Cup championship.
The team has had a handful of injuries, mishaps and suspensions this season, with the most recent spell plaguing the team at the worst possible time. Just last weekend against Liverpool, goalkeeper Nick Pope picked up a red card in the 22nd minute which ruled him out for that contest, and this weekend’s Cup Final.
Unfortunately for Newcastle, not only is the starting goalkeeper unable to play, but neither is the backup Martin Dubravka, who is cup-tied due to playing with Man United earlier this year.
Alongside Dubravka, newly added Anthony Gordon is cup-tied, resulting in him being unable to play as well.
With so many players out, what will Newcastle United’s starting lineup look like?
In goal, the team will be trotting out third-string keeper Loris Karius. He will be making his debut on one of the biggest stages.
On defense, Kieran Trippier and Dan Burn will man the left and right sides, with Sven Botman and Fabian Schar manning the middle. Botman has become a star defensively for the team this year since signing with them this past offseason.
Newcastle United will, fortunately, see the return of Bruno Guimaraes after losing him in the semi-final round of the Carabao Cup weeks ago due to suspension. He will instantly provide a spark to the midfield as it will most likely be Guimaraes, Sean Longstaff, and Joe Willock, who has returned from injury.
Up top, the team will be in a tough spot as they decide whether to trot out Callum Wilson or Alexander Isak, but the decision is much more simple. Wilson deserves the spot as Isak has not had enough time to be ready for a moment this big just yet. Alongside Wilson, it will most likely be Miguel Almiron and Allan Saint-Maximin on the wings.
What does it look like for Manchester United and their starting lineup?
Unfortunately for Manchester United, they will be without some big names on Sunday’s final. The usual Christian Eriksen, Donny Van De Beek and Mason Greenwood have been ruled out, but two others may be as well.
The recent rumors circulating could see Manchester United being without Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford, which would be two massive blows to the team.
However, even with the injuries and inactive players, the team is still loaded with depth.
In goal, the usual man in the back will be David De Gea as it’ll be hard for many balls to find the back netting against him.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka has been the usual right-back in recent times and will most certainly be starting across from Luke Shaw on the left side.
In the middle, it would be insane to think of anyone else besides Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane starting in the middle. Harry Maguire may get some time in the later half of the contest off the bench though.
Casemiro and Fred will be in the middle as they look to put an end to any sort of attacking threat Newcastle United tries to put together. Alongside those two, Bruno Fernandes may be alongside them as a trio in the midfield.
Up top, the team will most certainly give Jadon Sancho the start on the left side with his impressive play as of late, with Antony to counter on there right. If Marcus Rashford is healthy in time, he will be their starting striker, but if not the team might be in for an interesting rebuilding of the attacking core.
If Rashford does not play, Antony would slide to striker and Manchester United would need to dig deep into their bench.
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The contest between these two sides is set for Sunday, Feb. 26, at 11:30 a.m. EST or 4:30 p.m. GMT, at Wembley Stadium in Wembley, England.
The current odds for the Cup Final can be found below:
Moneyline: Manchester United +120 | Newcastle United +250
To Lift Trophy: Manchester United -163 | Newcastle United +130
Draw: +230
Total: Over 2.5, Manchester United +105 | Under 2.5, Newcastle United -134
Retrieved from bet365 on February 25th, 2023, at 11:30 a.m. EST
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