EDDIE HOWE
Eddie Howe says capping off AFC Bournemouth’s first Barclays Premier League season with a double over Manchester United on Tuesday would mean
everything to his players.
The Cherries have impressed in their first top-flight campaign, which included a 2-1 win over Man Utd in December.
They comfortably steered clear of relegation and will earn 14th position if they get three points at Old Trafford, in a match that was rescheduled after it was abandoned on Sunday due to a security alert.
"We won't need motivating for this one," said Howe. "Whenever you play Manchester United it's a historic occasion, so I am sure the players will be chomping at the bit to get out there.
"It's nice to be involved in games that mean something. We are a competitive team and relish that side of it, so it's a game we are all really looking forward to.
"It would mean everything to do the double over them."
Man Utd are set to play Uefa Europa League football next season, after Manchester City got a 1-1 draw at Swansea City to leave them in fourth position, three points clear of the Red Devils and with a goal difference of +30 in comparison to United’s +12.
Barring a freak result on Tuesday they will miss out on the Uefa Champions League, but midfielder Juan Mata is desperate to finish the season with a positive result that will give them fifth place ahead of their FA Cup final against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
“It's going to be a bittersweet farewell to Old Trafford, now that we know we won't be playing the Champions League next season,” Mata told manutd.com in his blog.
“It leaves us with a bad taste because, even if we enjoyed good moments together throughout the season, we weren't consistent enough to qualify for the top European competition.
“I feel sad because our supporters couldn't even have a normal last day of the Premier League, but we hope to grab a victory for them before the season expires.”
Ashley Young could be in line for a return on Tuesday, but Adnan Januzaj has joined Matteo Darmian (ankle) on the sidelines after picking up a knock during training.
Bastian Schweinsteiger remains unavailable, while Luke Shaw will not make his comeback from a broken leg suffered in September this season and Marouane Fellaini remains suspended.
AFC Bournemouth will be without Sylvain Distin (back) and Adam Smith (hernia).
Manchester United (from): De Gea, Romero, Borthwick-Jackson, Jones, McNair, Rojo, Smalling, Valencia, Varela, Blind, Fosu-Mensah, Carrick, Herrera, Lingard, Mata, Pereira, Schneiderlin, Young, Depay, Martial, Rashford, Rooney.
AFC Bournemouth (from): Boruc, Federici, Bennett, Cook, Daniels, Elphick, Francis, Wiggins, Arter, Gosling, MacDonald, O'Kane, Pugh, Ritchie, Stanislas, Surman, Afobe, Grabban, Gradel, Iturbe, King, Murray, Wilson.
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