Carling Cup Final
Sir Alex Ferguson has promised Manchester United pair Darron Gibson and Danny Welbeck they will start the Carling Cup final against Tottenham Hotspur.
The pair have shown plenty of promise for the Old Trafford outfit this term already and Ferguson feels they deserve an opportunity to strut their stuff in a major domestic showpiece.
Ferguson has also confirmed Rafael Da Silva, who had already been ruled out with an ankle injury, will be missing for about a month, while Anderson and Gary Neville will travel to Wembley.
Tottenham have Robbie Keane, Wilson Palacios, Carlo Cudicini and Pascal Chimbonda ineligible. They played earlier in the competition for different clubs, while on-loan Fraizer Campbell cannot play against his parent club.
Skipper Ledley King (knee) will require his usual late check but is hopeful of playing, as is Jonathan Woodgate after requiring stitches against Hull on Monday. Roman Pavlyuchenko has been carrying a groin complaint.
Harry Redknapp has a selection dilemma ahead of the Carling Cup final after Jamie O’Hara forced himself into the Tottenham manager’s plans on Thursday night.
O’Hara, returning from a hip injury, put in a box-to-box performance against Shakhtar Donetsk as Spurs drew 1-1 at White Hart Lane and went out of the UEFA Cup 3-1 on aggregate.
After being reduced to tears by being left out of last season’s cup-final squad, O’Hara will compete with David Bentley for a place in midfield against Manchester United on Sunday if there is no reaction to his injury.
“Jamie has been unlucky – he’s had an injury or he would have been in my team,” Redknapp said.
“He was top class against Shakhtar. He can play wide or inside and he is in my plans. He is a fantastic boy as well, you’d have him in your side any day of the week.”
Apart from goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes, Redknapp rested the other players who will definitely start at Wembley.
Man Utd (from): Foster, Kuszczak, Neville, Fabio, Gibson, Evans, Vidic, Ferdinand, O’Shea, Evra, Welbeck, Anderson, Carrick, Fletcher, Park, Scholes, Nani, Ronaldo, Giggs, Tevez, Rooney.
Tottenham (from): Gomes, Alnwick, Corluka, Assou-Ekotto, Woodgate, King, Bentley, Jenas, Modric, Zokora, Lennon, Pavyluchenko, Bent, O’Hara, Huddlestone, Bale, Dawson, Gunter, Giovani, Taarabt.
