This morning I overheard a Manchester United fan say to a friend that today’s FA Cup semi-final was a “lose-lose game”. His thinking was that either they actually lose to Championship side Coventry and get all the criticism that understandably comes with such a defeat. Or they beat Coventry to set up a pasting at the hands of rivals Man City in the final.
It’s not exactly positive is it? But going on this season it’s not hard to understand why that Man Utd fan didn’t exactly feel in a glass-half-full kind of mood. It’s been a season full of disappointing results, and, Sir Jim Ratcliffe coming in to run the football operations aside, devoid of hope, the one thing football fans need more than most.
Defeat today would be one of the big semi-final shocks – for all their problems United are still big favourites to make the final, and could possibly push Erik ten Hag nearer the exit door.
They head into the match with three draws and a defeat from their past four games and have dropped to seventh in the Premier League.
“Obviously, we want to win every game,” said Ten Hag. “So when we don’t win we are disappointed, are frustrated, sure, but we know also we can beat the best teams.
“When we play to our levels, we can achieve really high highs. We want to achieve every season. We want to win trophies and we have a big opportunity, because we are in the semi-final. We want to go into the final.”
Standing in their way are Coventry who are managed by none other than Mark Robins, who famously scored the goal ‘that saved Sir Alex Ferguson’s job’ in 1990. His header against Nottingham Forest in the third round kept United in the competition and set up the victory that earned Fergie his first trophy at Old Trafford.
Some may feel that this is a good time to face Ten Hag’s team. Not Robins.
“I hear people talking about Manchester United, that they are this or they are that, but the truth of it is they have got top players,” Robins said. “For us, we know they are clearly favorites to win this game by a million miles. They are expected to win, as simple as that.”
Stay here for all the team news and action, with kick-off set for 3.30.
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