The Manchester United vs Sunderland Capital One Cup semifinal second leg will take place this Wednesday, January 22, 2014 (11:45 AM Pacific, 19:45 GMT). A trip to Wembley is up for grabs at Old Trafford this evening and if David Moyes can take his side to Wembley for the second time this season, it will be something positive in a season of many negatives so far.
Catalyst
United will see this game as potentially being pivotal to the remainder of the season. If they over turn the 2-1 defeat suffered at the hand of Sunderland at The Stadium of Light 2 weeks ago, it could act as a catalyst for the rest of the season. With Rooney and Van Persie to come back and the likely arrival of Juan Mata over the next week, United would love to add a Wembley trip to face City to their diaries as they attempt to salvage something from this season.
Team News
Sunderland have a doubt over Steven Fletcher, who is suffering with an Achilles problem, while Carlos Cuellar is definitely missing. They will have been buoyed by the fact that they are no longer bottom of the league and that they have witnessed so many teams come to Old Trafford this season and get something. The great thing from Gus Poyet’s perspective is that he and his team have something to hold on to. The wrong approach, however, would be to go out there and try to hold on to a draw, one goal and this tie can be completely turned on its head. United are there to be gotten at, and Poyet will know this.
United have Vidic missing through suspension, while Evra is a doubt having limped off against Chelsea. Rooney is likely to make an appearance in a must win game although just how fit he is remains to be seen. Van Persie is still unavailable. Questions have been asked over Moyes’ tactics at various junctures this season and his apparent unwillingness to go out and try to win the big games. As a result, United haven’t even scored half of the goals that Manchester City have managed this year. Moyes will have to attack in this game though, so it should be interesting to see what his approach is.
Probable Lineups: Check out our full analysis of ManU’s probable lineup against Sunderland.
Manchester United vs Sunderland Prediction
Predicting anything at Old Trafford these days is hard, but with a partisan crowd that will be looking to get themselves down to Wembley for a final with Man City, the atmosphere will be intense. United have to score, and I think they will, but Sunderland will not lie down. Much will depend on who scores first, but I think that this game represents too much in terms of importance for United not to win it. Prediction: Manchester United 2 – 0 Sunderland
Manchester United vs Sunderland TV Info
The match will be televised on beIN Sports USA, and Sky Sports 1 (UK).
Manchester United 2-1 Sunderland Highlights
Chicharito scores in the last second to give ManU the 2-1 win and force penalties. Sunderland win 2-1 on pens.
