Man Utd boss Ten Hag handed double injury blow for Aston Villa clash

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag could reportedly be without two of his most important players for Thursday evening’s Carabao Cup meeting with Aston Villa, who thumped the Red Devils in the Premier League over the weekend. The west Midlands outfit ran riot thanks to goals from Leon Bailey, Lucas Digne and Jacob Ramsey, while United managed to hit back through an own goal from Ramsey but were unable to get themselves back into the contest as it progressed.Ten Hag will have a golden opportunity to exact revenge over Villa and their new boss Unai Emery when they lock horns with United once again on Thursday, although it seems as if Jadon Sancho and Anthony may be forced to miss the game in a two-pronged blow for the Red Devils. The United boss revealed on Wednesday that there are doubts over whether both players will be fit to feature and that they will need to be assessed further by club medics prior to kick-off, telling reporters: “Jadon Sancho, we have to wait, and Antony, we have to wait, today, on final training.”Sancho missed United’s defeat at the hands of Villa on Sunday through illness and is still touch-and-go for Thursday’s fixture, while Antony has been sidelined with a knock for the last two Premier League weekends. It seems unlikely that their issues will prevent either man from playing at this month’s World Cup, though, with Antony having already been named in Brazil’s squad and Sancho still waiting to find out if he has done enough to earn an England call-up on Thursday afternoon.United will also be without Brandon Williams, Axel Tuanzebe and Raphael Varane on Thursday evening, although the latter is expected to be passed fit for the World Cup if he is selected by France when the defending champions announce their 26-man squad. However, Ten Hag could be poised to benefit from the return of midfield maestro Bruno Fernandes, who was suspended on Sunday after picking up five yellow cards.JUST IN: Liverpool braced for Jude Bellingham heartbreak amid Man City ‘belief’ Erik ten Hag could be without Jadon Sancho and Antony on Thursday evening (Image: GETTY)The Red Devils manager has not been one to make wholesale changes to his line-up during his short time in Manchester thus far, but will have plenty of decisions to mull over with the likes of Harry Maguire, Anthony Martial and Scott McTominay all pushing to start. Thursday’s meeting with Villa could also mark a first-ever United appearance for Martin Dubravka, who was drafted in on loan from Newcastle towards the end of the summer transfer window.”First of all, all the games that we play, we have only one aim,” said Ten Hag in Wednesday’s media conference. “We have to win, so that is the most important. We have to win, so we put the best players on the pitch we have. For every game, we make a proper plan for the line-up and tomorrow is the same.DON’T MISSMan Utd and Arsenal risk UEFA penalties after Premier League agreementCristiano Ronaldo ‘threw chair at teacher’ before Man Utd successReece James learns England World Cup fate after Gareth Southgate call United were comfortably beaten by Villa away from home on Sunday afternoon (Image: EXPRESS)”Of course, we have a lot of games to cover and this is a different competition. We plan some changes but want to play a strong team. We have only one aim. We have to win tomorrow, to go to the next round.”There are some players coming back and also some question marks. As you have seen, Anthony Martial, for the last 20 minutes, was back at Villa, so we are happy with that and we hope he can continue this tomorrow. He will be in the squad, we have to see, but he will have minutes, definitely, if he has recovered.”Want the latest Premier League news as we publish it on Express Sport? Join our Facebook group by clicking here.