Louis van Gaal has warned his Manchester United stars not to underestimate minnows Yeovil as they bid to avoid another humiliation at the hands of lower league opposition in Sunday's FA Cup third round tie.
United head to the unglamourous surroundings of tiny Huish Park to launch their challenge to win the competition for the first time since 2004 when they eased to a 3-0 final victory over Millwall.
That is the longest time without an FA Cup win for the club since the 14 years between the 1963 win over Leicester City and the 1977 defeat of Liverpool.
United have reached two finals, two semi-finals and two quarter-finals since 2004 but winning the trophy for a 12th time has proved elusive.
But in addition to their desire to end that barren spell, United manager Van Gaal is driven by a desire to prove his team have learned the lesson of their embarrassing League Cup exit earlier this season.
The Dutchman picked a team of fringe and youth team players as United were humiliated 4-0 by third tier side Milton Keynes Dons in August and it seems apparent he realised from that chastening day not to underestimate lower league opposition again.
“I had the experience against MK Dons, who are also in League One,” Van Gaal said.
“You never know in a cup match, you have to win because you’re out if you lose.
“We have to beat Yeovil but every team in England wants to beat Manchester United so it will be difficult.
“Everything about playing a lower league team will be different – the pitch, the stadium.
“For the players, it’s more difficult to prepare for a match like this, especially after playing so much over Christmas.”
Even though United have not given up hope of winning the Premier League title, left-back Luke Shaw believes the FA Cup represents arguably their best chance of silverware this season.
“We are not going to say the Premier League is over yet, because that is still our No 1 priority,” Shaw added.
“We want to win that, but we are going to focus on this game on Sunday.
“The reason I came to Manchester United is because I want to be winning trophies and I think I have got the best chance here.”
Van Gaal will check on the availability of Marcos Rojo (thigh), Daley Blind (knee) and Marouane Fellaini (illness) who are all major doubts.
United are also without Ashley Young (hamstring) and Antonio Valenica (groin), while Angel Di Maria has returned to training after a thigh injury but may not be risked.
The tie offers Yeovil respite from a testing League One campaign that has left Gary Johnson’s side rooted at the foot of table at the mid-point of the season.
And while the mouthwatering prospect of facing United’s superstars provides a welcome distraction, it also provides a reminder of the time the two clubs last met in the competition in 1949.
Yeovil, then of the Southern League, sprang to prominence by beating Sunderland in the fourth round before losing heavily to United, the cup holders, 8-0 in the following round.
The current group of players have been made well aware of the link and skipper Joe Edwards said: “You don’t realise what it could mean historically for the club. It is a massive fixture that stays with the club for a long time.”
Johnson, meanwhile, hopes the match provides a lift for the remainder of the season but acknowledges a heavy defeat could have lasting effects.
“They could kill your confidence or you could gain confidence from knowing you have played well against a top team,” he said.
“Everyone enjoys the FA Cup but we’ll enjoy this one and then get back down to the nitty-gritty of the league in the second half of the season.”
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The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
RESULT
Brazil 2 Croatia 0
Brazil: Neymar (69'), Firmino (90' 3)
The%C2%A0specs%20
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LAST-16 FIXTURES
Sunday, January 20
3pm: Jordan v Vietnam at Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
6pm: Thailand v China at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
9pm: Iran v Oman at Mohamed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Monday, January 21
3pm: Japan v Saudi Arabia at Sharjah Stadium
6pm: Australia v Uzbekistan at Khalifa bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
9pm: UAE v Kyrgyzstan at Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Tuesday, January 22
5pm: South Korea v Bahrain at Rashid Stadium, Dubai
8pm: Qatar v Iraq at Al Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi
THE DETAILS
Solo: A Star Wars Story
Dir: Ron Howard
Starring: Alden Ehrenreich, Emilia Clarke, Woody Harrelson
3/5
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Director: Paul Weitz
Stars: Kevin Hart
3/5 stars
The%20US%20Congress%20explained
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Tailors and retailers miss out on back-to-school rush
Tailors and retailers across the city said it was an ominous start to what is usually a busy season for sales.
With many parents opting to continue home learning for their children, the usual rush to buy school uniforms was muted this year.
“So far we have taken about 70 to 80 orders for items like shirts and trousers,” said Vikram Attrai, manager at Stallion Bespoke Tailors in Dubai.
“Last year in the same period we had about 200 orders and lots of demand.
“We custom fit uniform pieces and use materials such as cotton, wool and cashmere.
“Depending on size, a white shirt with logo is priced at about Dh100 to Dh150 and shorts, trousers, skirts and dresses cost between Dh150 to Dh250 a piece.”
A spokesman for Threads, a uniform shop based in Times Square Centre Dubai, said customer footfall had slowed down dramatically over the past few months.
“Now parents have the option to keep children doing online learning they don’t need uniforms so it has quietened down.”
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
How to help or find other cats to adopt
Tips for used car buyers
- Choose cars with GCC specifications
- Get a service history for cars less than five years old
- Don’t go cheap on the inspection
- Check for oil leaks
- Do a Google search on the standard problems for your car model
- Do your due diligence. Get a transfer of ownership done at an official RTA centre
- Check the vehicle’s condition. You don’t want to buy a car that’s a good deal but ends up costing you Dh10,000 in repairs every month
- Validate warranty and service contracts with the relevant agency and and make sure they are valid when ownership is transferred
- If you are planning to sell the car soon, buy one with a good resale value. The two most popular cars in the UAE are black or white in colour and other colours are harder to sell
Tarek Kabrit, chief executive of Seez, and Imad Hammad, chief executive and co-founder of CarSwitch.com
Turning%20waste%20into%20fuel
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Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
More coverage from the Future Forum
The specs
Engine: 2x201bhp AC Permanent-magnetic electric
Transmission: n/a
Power: 402bhp
Torque: 659Nm
Price estimate: Dh200,000
On sale: Q3 2022
On racial profiling at airports
SHALASH%20THE%20IRAQI
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UAE%20medallists%20at%20Asian%20Games%202023
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Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
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