Cristiano Ronaldo is unlikely to start for Manchester United against Fulham, even if he has recovered from the illness which ruled him out against Aston Villa.
Erik ten Hag claims he is not prepared to rest any of his players who are heading to Qatar because his priority is picking up three points at Craven Cottage.
The United boss says he will use Ronaldo, who has scored in every World Cup he has played in since making his debut in the tournament in 2006, if he feels it is in the best interests of the team.
Speaking after the Villa win, Ten Hag said: “He was ill so he can recover from that. It’s not a serious illness that takes days or weeks so he can be international squad.”
He then added: “The players are all aware of the importance of the game against Fulham and I will not take account of the World Cup in thar regard. We will play the best team we play until Sunday. It is the interest of Manchester United and them only.”
Ft-again Anthony Martial has emerged as Erik ten Hag's No 1 striker and netted against Villa in what was only his second start under Ten Hag because of his recurring injury problems.
Marcus Rashford and Bruno Fernandes could start on either wing for United whilst Ten Hag has a decision to make over whether to persist with the ineffectual Donny van de Beek in the No 10 role.
Van de Beek failed to sparkle yet again in his third straight start in that position against Villa and yet Ten Hag was forced to defend his former Ajax star.
He has ruled out letting him leave again on loan in January and says he must prove himself at Old Trafford.
Antony could miss out again through injury and Ten Hag was not optimistic when asked on Thursday night about his chances of playing.
“We work on that, but I can’t confirm that he will be in the squad for Sunday,” he said. “He made progress in the last days and we will see tomorrow or Saturday if he will be in the team.”
Midfield should feature Casemiro and Christian Eriksen, while Lisandro Martinez and David De Gea are shoo-ins to start against the Cottagers. Ten Hag’s biggest defensive poser is who to play at right-back with Diogo Dalot suspended.
He dismissed talk of bringing in Aaron Wan-Bissaka or Brandon Williams and he could move Victor Lindelof across from centre-half. Tyrell Malacia could be a more attractive option, even though he is left-footed.
Manchester United predicted line-up : De Gea; Malacia, Maguire, Martinez, Shaw; Eriksen, Casemiro; Fernandes, Van de Beek, Rashford; Martial.
