Man Utd predicted lineup for crucial Aston Villa fixture as Marcus Rashford decision made

Marcus Rashford’s half-time substitute against Porto drew even more criticism for Erik ten Hag, who is set to coach Manchester United for what may be the last time.

Manchester United will face Aston Villa on Sunday in what might be Erik ten Hag’s farewell match.

The Red Devils are in fast fall, having won only three of their first ten games this season and failing to win in their past four. Ten Hag’s side required a 91st-minute equalizer from Harry Maguire on Thursday to escape another humiliating setback, this time in the Europa League against Porto.

United led 2-0 after 20 minutes in Portugal, but trailed 3-2 early in the second half. Captain Bruno Fernandes was sent off for the second time in five days, reducing them to ten men.

Fernandes will thus be suspended for the Red Devils’ next European match, but not in the Premier League. The United captain’s red card in the humiliating 3-0 home loss to Tottenham last Sunday was overturned after a successful appeal.Fernandes is thus set to start against Villa, although Marcus Rashford’s position in the XI is less definite. Ten Hag sent Rashford off at half-time against Porto, perplexing fans and critics, despite the fact that he scored the Red Devils’ opening goal and assisted Rasmus Hojlund.

Ten Hag cited ‘rotation’ as his reason for replacing the 26-year-old, stating that he wanted to give minutes to Alejandro Garnacho, who played well in the second half. Rashford and Garnacho are likely to start on the flanks, with Amad falling from the starting lineup.

Ten Hag might also rotate his midfield, with Kobbie Mainoo out for Thursday’s encounter and Manuel Ugarte on the bench. Centre-back is also an area of interest, with £43 million signing Matthijs De Ligt under fire for another poor performance until Maguire, who replaced him, became the night’s hero.Ten Hag’s future is by far the most talked-about topic ahead of the trip to Villa Park, where co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe will be in attendance. And on Tuesday, the United hierarchy will convene in London for a long-awaited meeting that may include a discussion over Ten Hag’s status.

INEOS chairman Ratcliffe will be joined by Joel Glazer, who will retain United’s executive co-chairman, INEOS head of sport Sir Dave Brailsford, United CEO Omar Berrada, sports director Dan Ashworth, and technical director Jason Wilcox. Roger Bell, chief financial officer, and Collette Roche, chief operational officer, are also slated to attend the conference.

Ratcliffe would not have made the choice to fire Ten Hag, as he stated in an interview with BBC Sport on Friday: “I like Erik. He’s an excellent coach, but it’s ultimately not my decision.”The management team that runs Manchester United must decide how to best administer the team in a variety of areas. However, Manchester United’s current management team has only been in place since June or July.

“They weren’t there in January, February, March, or April; [CEO] Omar and Dan Ashworth just came in July. They’ve only been there for a few weeks, so they need to assess the situation and make some sound judgments.

Predicted Manchester United XI vs. Aston Villa: (4-2-3-1). Onana; Mazraoui, Maguire, Martinez, and Dalot; Ugarte; Mainoo; Garnacho, Fernandes, Rashford; Hojlund