Manchester United welcome Newcastle United to Old Trafford on Wednesday night in the pick of the ties in the Capital One Cup.
Watch Wednesday's match live on Sky Sports 2HD
Manchester United welcome Newcastle United to Old Trafford on Wednesday night in the pick of the ties in the Capital One Cup.
The tournament represents an opportunity to claim some silverware for both sides and there are sure to be a host of hungry young players on show as Sir Alex Ferguson and Alan Pardew prepare to ring the changes.
Ferguson saw his United side battle back to beat Liverpool 2-1 on Sunday and register a fifth straight victory in all competitions.
The Red Devils are now up to second in the Premier League, one point behind Chelsea, while they made a winning start to their UEFA Champions League campaign against Galatasaray.
Newcastle also had to work hard for a league victory at the weekend, with Demba Ba scoring the only goal of their home clash with Norwich City.
Pardew's side have not yet clicked into top gear this term and the manager will be looking for a confidence-boosting evening in the League Cup.
History is very much against the Magpies, though, as they have not defeated Manchester United at Old Trafford since 1972.Darren Fletcher is expected to make his first start in 10 months after spending most of last season fighting a chronic bowel problem.
New-boy Angelo Henriquez - who is not available for Champions League games as United did not receive international clearance in time for him to be registered - is available, whilst Nick Powell and Alex Buttner are also amongst those set to make Sir Alex Ferguson's starting line-up.
Nemanja Vidic is facing eight weeks out after undergoing knee surgery, but Wayne Rooney is closing in on a comeback from a gashed thigh.
Fabricio Coloccini and Cheick Tiote could both return to the Newcastle squad.
Coloccini has recovered from a hamstring injury after being allowed to stay with Argentina's medical team, and midfielder Tiote has finally shaken off a calf problem.
Pardew is again likely to rest several of his big names and has hinted Rob Elliot could get another chance in goal, while Tim Krul (elbow) is hoping to be given the go-ahead to resume training when he sees his specialist on Wednesday and full-back Danny Simpson (hamstring) could rejoin his team-mates later this week.
