Erik ten Hag explains why Fred starts for Manchester United vs Man City in FA Cup final

Erik ten Hag has started Fred in Manchester United's game against Manchester City in the FA Cup final for tactical reasons.

Antony sustained a serious-looking injury against Chelsea on May 25 and although there was an outside chance of him being available to play City at Wembley, he didn't recover in time and he's absent from the matchday squad.

Fernandes played on the right wing in the Manchester derby victory against City at Old Trafford in January and the tweak worked.

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After impressing in that 2-1 victory, Fernandes was expected to start in that position again on Saturday afternoon and when the starting teams were revealed ahead of kick-off, his relocation to the wing in the FA Cup final was confirmed.

With Fernandes on the right, Fred has been given a start and he'll play alongside Casemiro and Christian Eriksen.

Ten Hag discussed his line-up with MUTV and said: "I feel great, to be part of this FA Cup final is great, the biggest domestic cup final in the world. The midfield is always the key area, but it's not only about Fred. You will see in the game.

"But with Fred, we know his capacities, he's really good at stopping players, really good at winning balls. We won't always have possession, we didn't have the last game at Old Trafford.

"We had less possession but we dominated the game, by creating more chances, creating more final entries, creating more shots on target. That's what we have to do in this game."

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