Erik ten Hag believes Manchester United have a "really good" midfield combination in Casemiro and Fred to offset the absence of Christian Eriksen.
Eriksen has been ruled out for at least three months with an ankle injury sustained in the FA Cup fourth round win over Reading.
Fred has only started five times in the Premier League this season but he excelled in the wins over Tottenham and Manchester City.
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Scott McTominay missed the weekend win over Reading and Fred is set to start in the League Cup semi-final second leg against Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford on Wednesday night.
"I think you can never fill that (gap) because every player has his own characteristics and identity, another player will always fill in in a different way but it doesn't mean you have to be less successful," Ten Hag said.
"It's quite clear Christian Eriksen brings top quality to our squad and especially, he has some specifics that are hard to replace, for instance his impacts in the final third with his final ball.
"I think you mentioned already in your first sentence he (Fred)'s playing together with Casemiro in the Brazil squad. I would say there's not a worse squad in the world!
"They have so many choices they can make but they often prefer to play them together and that tells something about the quality Fred has and what he can contribute to the team.
"He did it on several times. You see his performances against Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City, when he's coming on in the last game he scores a goal. He has a lot of qualities and they're a really good combination; Casemiro and Fred."
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