2 Things Manchester United should do to win against Newcastle United at Carabao Cup

Manchester United will take on Newcastle United in round of 16 of Carabao Cup on Wednesday, Nov. 1. Manchester United are yet to recover from their 0-3 thrashing at the hands of Manchester City last weekend.

Meanwhile, Eddie Howe’s Newcastle are a couple of points ahead of the Red Devils in the league table, who might not start as the favourite on Wednesday.

However, Necastle will be without the services of a few key players like Sven Botman, Sandro Tonali and Alexander Isak. Hence, Manchester United will want to grab the opportunity with both hands to beat the Magpies.

On that note, let us take a look at two things Manchester United will need to do to win the match:

#1. Getting their starting XI right

Erik ten Hag will have to make some decisions in this regard. Last Sunday against Manchester City, it was seen that Bruno Fernandes couldn't perform his defensive duties well enough. Hence, it will probably be wiser to start with Fernandes as the No. 10 instead of the right-sided midfielder.

This means that either Scott McTominay, who played as the No. 10 against City, or Antony will have to start on the right flank, which will also nullify the former’s goal-scoring threat to an extent. Hence, it is a conundrum that the Dutch manager faces ahead of the clash.

He will also have to decide whether he should start with Christian Eriksen and Sofyan Amrabat as the holding midfielders in Casemiro’s absence, which seems to be the case at the moment, as Mason Mount is unlikely to feature in the starting XI.

The manager can also think of playing Raphael Varane instead of Johnny Evans at the centre of their defence.

#2. Protecting the flanks well

United were tormented by City through their right hand side and ten Hag will not want this to repeat against Newcastle. Hence, he might think of starting Aaron Wan-Bissaka as the right-back instead of Diogo Dalot, as the former is a better defensive player.

Sergio Reguilon might also start in the place of Victor Lindelof, who struggled against Manchester City as the left-back. He will also think of assigning more defensive duties to his wingers, as someone like Marcus Rashford has repeatedly been found wanting in that regard.

This is something that the Red Devils will have to address if they are to avoid conceding goals. It remains to be seen how well they cope with the attacking threat posed by Newcastle’s wingers, Miguel Almiron and Anthony Gordon.