Old Trafford — Manchester April 22, 2013 KO 8:00 PM BST
By Adam Mazrani
Sir Alex Ferguson may look to reshuffle his pack slightly ahead of the visit of Aston Villa.
Jonny Evans may come in for either Rio Ferdinand or Nemanja Vidic, who have now played two games in a row, while the likes of Tom Cleverley, Ryan Giggs and Nani are all pushing for recalls in midfield. Ashley Young (ankle) and Paul Scholes (knee) remain out.
For the visitors, Paul Lambert may look to name an unchanged side from the one that has impressed against Stoke and Fulham in recent weeks.
Ciaran Clark is available but Nathan Baker may still be preferred in central defence. Senior striker Gabriel Agbonlahor may recover from a thigh injury to take his place in attack, with Jordan Browery dropping to the bench.
DID YOU KNOW?
- Manchester United have only lost one of their last 40 meetings with Aston Villa in all competitions.
- Villa’s only victory during that run in December 2009 under Martin O’Neill was when Gabriel Agbonlahor (pictured right) scored in a 1-0 win at Old Trafford.
- From that matchday squad, only Agbonlahor, Richard Dunne and Brad Guzan remain at the club.
- United, on the other hand still retain eight of their starting XI.
- Only Arsenal have scored more goals (42) than United have scored (40) at home this season.
- Villa have the joint-worst defensive record in the league, conceding 35 along with Norwich and Newcastle.
- Christian Benteke needs one more goal to become the first Aston Villa player since Juan Pablo Angel in 2003-04 to score 20 goals in a season.
- Wayne Rooney has scored twice in each of Aston Villa’s last two visits to Old Trafford.
