Bruno Fernandes insists Manchester United cannot underestimate ‘physical’ and ‘tough’ Coventry City after avoiding Premier League rivals Manchester City and Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-final draw.
United defeated Liverpool in an exciting game at Old Trafford on Sunday and were given a favorable draw against Championship side Coventry City, who surprised Wolves earlier in the weekend.
Manchester United will face the Sky Blues at Wembley on the weekend of April 20 as they aim to reach a 22nd FA Cup final and secure a second trophy under Erik ten Hag following the EFL Cup last season.
Challenging them is a Coventry side who are just four points away from the Championship play-off places, having won five of their last seven games in all competitions under former United striker Mark Robins.
‘It will be a tough game,’ Manchester United captain Fernandes told MUTV. ‘I watch some of their games because my chef at home is a Sunderland fan, so I get to watch some Championship games with him at home.
‘So at times they have good players on the ball. They are really difficult to play against physically. We saw it against Wolves.
‘They won the game in three minutes I think, 97 and 90 plus 10, something like that. So we know what to expect and we can’t be getting there and be surprised for what they’re going to bring to us.
‘We have to do the same as we did today on running, on tracking back or fighting spirit and everything, and then put the quality we have put on in the 30 minutes today for longer spells in the game.’
The FA Cup represents Manchester United’s last chance for silverware this season and Fernandes wants to combine that trophy with a top-four finish, with Ten Hag’s side currently sixth, nine points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa.
‘We stated now that our goal for the rest of the season is getting into the top four, and trying to win the FA Cup,’ the Portuguese midfielder added.
‘We’ve got to do everything we can to get that two goals that we have until the end of the season. We can’t get anymore, but the FA Cup is a big trophy for this club, for this country. And we want to get into the final.
‘We know it’s going to be tough; [there are] good teams into the semi-final, but we’ve got to do everything we can to get [to the final].’
Scott McTominay gave Manchester United an early lead against Liverpool but Jurgen Klopp’s side led 2-1 at half-time, Alexis Mac Allister and Mohamed Salah turning the tie around.
A late goal from Antony took the contest to extra-time and while Liverpool led again through Harvey Elliott, United fought back and progressed thanks to goals from Marcus Rashford and Amad Diallo.
With Manchester United drawing Coventry, the other semi-final tie will see Premier League champions Manchester City take on Chelsea.
City secured yet another Wembley trip by winning against Newcastle United 2-0 on Saturday, while Chelsea beat Leicester City 4-2 after needing extra-time against the high-performing Championship team.
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