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Manchester United will be without Patrick Dorgu for Sunday's Emirates FA Cup fifth-round tie against Fulham at Old Trafford. The wing-back, who signed for the Reds from Lecce earlier this month, is serving the first of a three-match suspension after being sent off for serious foul play during Wednesday's 3-2 home win over Ipswich Town. His ban applies to all domestic competitions, meaning he will sit out of this fixture and the Premier League meetings with Arsenal and Leicester City too.
Noussair Mazraoui was introduced for Alejandro Garnacho to shore up the United defence following Dorgu's dismissal and he would appear to be the most obvious candidate for Ruben Amorim to draft into his starting XI. In Friday's press conference, Amorim confirmed that United would have the same squad to choose from for the Cottagers tie, other than Dorgu. That means Altay Bayindir, Toby Collyer and Tom Heaton are set to still be missing, along with Amad, Jonny Evans, Kobbie Mainoo and Lisandro Martinez, who are all longer-term concerns.
There is no confirmed return date for either Mason Mount or Luke Shaw, with both players sidelined since December. Amorim added that Alejandro Garnacho picked up a knock in midweek, but he thinks the Argentina international will be fit to play. The FA Cup is a crucial competition for Manchester United, as they seek to salvage something from a disappointing season. The Reds have struggled in the Premier League, but a win against Fulham could boost their morale and give them a chance to progress in the Europa League and the FA Cup.
Fulham, on the other hand, have been performing well in recent weeks, with Marco Silva's team sitting just five points behind fourth-placed Manchester City. The Cottagers have never won a major honour and contested the final of this competition in 1975, but with Arsenal and Liverpool having made early exits, every remaining side will harbour hopes of progressing to Wembley. Sasa Lukic is available for Fulham despite his Premier League suspension, but this match will come too soon for Emile Smith Rowe. The match is scheduled to kick off at 4.30pm GMT on Sunday, 2 March at Old Trafford in Manchester, and viewers in the UK can watch the match live on BBC One, with coverage starting at 4pm.
The predicted lineups for the match are: Man Utd XI: Bayindir; de Ligt, Maguire, Yoro; Mazraoui, Ugarte, Fernandes, Dalot; Garnacho, Zirkzee; Hojlund. Fulham XI: Leno; Diop, Andersen, Cuenca; Castagne, Lukic, Berge, Robinson; Adama, Pereira; Muniz. The odds for the match are: Man Utd win - 6/4, Draw - 9/4, Fulham win - 13/8. With the FA Cup being a crucial competition for both teams, it is expected to be a closely contested match, with Manchester United seeking to progress and Fulham aiming to cause an upset. The following are the match scores for the FA Cup fifth round:
- Manchester City 3, Plymouth Argyle 1
- Preston 1, Burnley 0
- Palace 2, Millwall 1
- Bournemouth 1, Wolves 1 (Bournemouth won 4-2 on penalties)
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