Man United or Man City face fixture congestion after derby due to cup draw
One of Manchester United or Manchester City will
be forced to play two games in three days at the
end of October -- one being their Premier League
derby -- after both were drawn at home in the
Capital One Cup fourth round.
United and City never play at home on the same
night because of policing issues, but one of them is
set for a intense run of fixtures soon after next
month's international break.
Therefore, one will have to face a second fixture
little more than 48 hours after their top-of-the-
table clash, potentially forcing Louis van Gaal or
Manuel Pellegrini to select a weakened team in the
Capital One Cup.
United will meet Championship promotion
contenders Middlesbrough while City take on
Premier League rivals Crystal Palace.
One match will be played on Tuesday, Oct. 27 --
two days after the derby -- and the other on
Wednesday, Oct. 28.
United and City meet at Old Trafford on Oct. 25
while both are in Premier League action six days
later, when City host Norwich and United visit
Crystal Palace.
Neither match can be shifted back to the Sunday
because both have Champions League games on
Nov. 3.
Both Van Gaal and Pellegrini selected strong sides
in their third-round victories.
City's Chilean coach omitted only Fernandinho of
his fit first-team players as they won 4-1 at
Sunderland, while Dutch boss Van Gaal arguably
picked eight of his preferred starting XI as Ipswich
were defeated 3-0.
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