Like Hollywood movies, and to a lesser extent TV shows, it’s time for a reboot. Yes, the first meeting between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester United in the FA Cup third round didn’t yield a decisive winner, and thus we have a replay at hand on Wednesday night.
The first meeting, which ended goalless, might be more memorable for what the managers said afterward in regards to Raul Jimenez transfer rumors than anything that actually happened on the pitch. Perhaps this time will be more compelling and exciting.
For the visitors, Nuno Espirito Santo will have all of his key players fit and available, continuing the overall trend that he’s been blessed with this season and last. A huge part of Wolves’ success in recent years has been their ability and good fortune to avoid injury.
Flipping over to United Paul Pogba remains a long term injury absentee, and he’ll be out of commission for this one. He suffered an injury set back with his ankle/foot during the festive period, and once again the initial assessment of the situation has proven to be wrong.
Again the timeline for his return is shifting, so it’s definitely a fluid situation. Joining him on the sidelines for this one are Diogo Dalot, Eric Bailly, Timothy Fosu-Mensah, Scott McTominay and Marcos Rojo.
Manchester United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers FA Cup 3rd Round Replay FYIs
MUFC starting XI prediction: go to this link
Kickoff: Wed. Jan 15, Od Trafford Stadium 7:45pm
TV: BT Sport 1
Key Stat: Wolves have lost nine of their 10 previous FA Cup third round replays
United 2, Wolves 2 (United advances on penalties)
The Red Devils are winless in their last five against the Midlands club across all competitions, but it’s time for them to finally take the next stop and move forward to the next round.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly appears on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
You can follow Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com on Twitter here and his cat on Instagram at this link.