How Man Utd could line up vs Astana with Mason Greenwood set to start in Europa League
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MANCHESTER UNITED are set to start Mason Greenwood for Thursday night's Europa League clash with Astana.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is readying himself to play a hatful of young academy stars, with Greenwood finally set to have his shot.
The young forward, 17, had a blistering pre-season campaign and looked more than comfortable leading the line.
With Alexis Sanchez and Romelu Lukaku gone, Anthony Martial injured and Marcus Rashford struggling for form in a central position, Greenwood may be trialled against the Kazakh side.
Rashford himself was given his big break in the Europa League, when he took advantage of an injury crisis to score twice in the 5-1 win over Midtjylland in 2016.
Now it could be Greenwood's turn to steal the headlines, with Angel Gomes, James Garner and Tahith Chong also in the running for game at Old Trafford.
Sergio Romero is set to continue his stint as "cup keeper" with the likes of Timothy Fosu-Mensah, Phil Jones, Axel Tuanzebe and Marco Rojo set for valuable game-time.
Hotshot midfielder Angel Gomes is on the radar of a start against Astana too - with Scott McTominay and Andreas Pereira likely to feature from the get-go.
Greenwood won't be joined by red-hot Daniel James - who is out injured - meaning Rashford could start on the left with Tahith Chong completing the young, exciting front-line for United.
Speaking ahead of the game, defender Jones claimed it's an exciting night for the whole squad, with squad changes almost certain.
Jones revealed: "There are players like myself, who’ve not been involved as much, but it’s a chance for everyone to get games.
“It’s a busy period when all the games come thick and fast, when you need a big squad with everyone ready to fight. But it's a period we relish.
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“There are some unbelievably talented young players coming through. That’s something we should all be excited about.
"Hopefully, [the Europa League] is a great chance for them to showcase what they’re about.
“If they do what they do in training and in the games that I’ve seen them play, they’ll be absolutely fine.”