Man Utd vs Sunderland - Team News, Match Preview & Likely Line-Ups

Date: Wednesday, January 22 Venue: Old Trafford Kick-Off: 19:45 Can Manchester United overcome a 2-1 deficit against Sunderland when the two sides meet in tonight's second leg of the Capital One Cup semi-finals?

Team News

Manchester United are once more expected to be without the injured Wayne Rooney, as well as strike partner Robin van Persie. Captain Nemnaja Vidic is suspended following his red card against Chelsea at the weekend while Patrice Evra is also a doubt after limping out of that match. Sunderland's Steven Fletcher is doubtful with an Achilles injury, while goalkeeper Keiren Westwood and defender Carlos Cuellar remain sidelined. (bbc)

Key Stats

Manchester United have won eight of their last nine League Cup semi-final ties, losing only to Chelsea in the 2004-05 season. However, they must overturn a 2-1 deficit to reach this year's final, after losing the first leg at the Stadium of Light. The Black Cats have not won at Old Trafford in a major competition since May 1968 (D9 L16). The Red Devils have not lost consecutive League Cup games since September 2007.

Likely Line-Ups

Man Utd De Gea, Buttner, Evans, Jones, Rafael, Carrick, Cleverley, Januzaj, Welbeck, Valencia, Hernandez Sunderland Mannone, O'Shea, Bardsley, Brown, Celustka, Johnson, Sung-Yueng Ki, Colback, Gardner, Larsson, Altidore

Match Preview

A Fabio Borini penalty is what separates these two sides as Manchester United prepare to host Sunderland in the second leg of the League Cup semi-finals. A Wembley Final against Manchester City awaits the winner and for United, a potential fixture against their 'noisy neighbours' is about the only thing keeping their season alive. No one would have suspected the Capital One Cup would end up representing the Red Devil's one and only realistic shot at silverware this season but that's the reality at the mid-way point. Defeat to Chelsea on Sunday ended their title challenge, regardless of what David Moyes says, while it would take an eternal optimist to envisage Champions League glory now. United are in need of a bit of cheer and can take solace from the fact they have not lost to Sunderland at Old Trafford in a major competition since May 1968. Good omens if they are to get to Wembley. But the Black Cats will take confidence from their win a fortnight ago and will remember they were unfortunate to lose their Premier League clash at the Stadium of Light in October. We could be in for a good game of football here and with the added possibility that United's season could go off the rails, there's everything to play for. I'm going for a home win. Prediction: 2-0
Contributor
Contributor

Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.