After being left off of the team that was embarrassed by Manchester City over the weekend, Erik ten Hag is planning to put Cristiano Ronaldo back into the starting lineup for Manchester United. Ronaldo was left off of the team that was humiliated by Manchester City.

The Portuguese striker, who is 37 years old, was not used by United during their humiliating performance at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday, when they were down 4-0 at halftime. He was left on the bench the entire game. Ten Hag insisted after the game that he did not use Ronaldo "out of respect for his career," even though he threw on five other substitutes in an effort to salvage some pride from the 6-3 loss.

Since then, United's manager has admitted that Ronaldo is "p***** off" when he is not playing, but the Dutchman is now poised to hand the five-time winner of the Ballon d'Or the opportunity to stake his claim for a regular starting berth against the Cypriot outfit Omonia Nicosia in the Europa League on Thursday. Ronaldo has won the Ballon d'Or five times.

As one of six players who have been replaced from the starting lineup against City, Ronaldo is expected to take the offensive reins as the team's leader. During that matchup, Ronaldo was left on the bench in favor of Anthony Martial, and Martial went on to justify his manager's decision by scoring two goals in the dying minutes to cut the deficit in half.

Martial's play has reportedly been good enough to earn him a spot in the starting lineup for Thursday's match. However, it appears that he will be starting in a less desirable role on the left side of a three-man support act behind Ronaldo, who is expected to start in the central striker position instead of Martial.

Antony, a new acquisition, will play on the right flank, and Bruno Fernandes will continue to operate in the No. 10 role. Antony was the target of criticism in the aftermath of United's loss to City, despite the fact that he scored a spectacular goal that made the score 4-1 and gave United a glimmer of hope.

The Brazilian winger was criticized by a number of commentators, including the legendary Paul Scholes of Manchester United, for not tracking back and providing support for the right-back Diogo Dalot. Dalot was having a difficult afternoon due to the play of several City players, including Jack Grealish. It is anticipated that Dalot will have fewer difficulties during the match against Omonia, and a two-man midfield pivot will provide increased protection in the event that Antony once again fails to make an adequate defensive contribution.

Due to the fact that Casemiro has been slowly eased into action by Ten Hag, it appears as though he will be given only his second start when he makes his seventh appearance for United. Ten Hag insisted that the reason for his omission from the starting lineup against City had nothing to do with the fact that he had contributed anything since his £60 million transfer. The five-time winner of the Champions League was among the subs.

Ten Hag stated the following during a press conference that took place on Wednesday: "We will play tomorrow with our best team, and we have to construct a team because we want a competitive culture." It had everything to do with Scott [McTominay], and absolutely nothing to do with Casemiro.

We were unsuccessful at Brentford during the times that McTominay was not on the team. Casemiro is going to play a significant part because we are familiar with his history, the championships he's won, and the way he trains every day.

McTominay and Christian Eriksen have developed a strong partnership over the past few weeks, but City's midfield completely overpowered them in their most recent match. As a result, Ten Hag is prepared to give Casemiro a chance to play alongside compatriot and international teammate Fred in the middle of the park.

After limping off the field on Sunday with an injury, Raphael Varane has been ruled out of playing and will be replaced in the back four by Victor Lindelof, who will partner Lisandro Martinez due to the absence of Harry Maguire. It is expected that Luke Shaw will be drafted into the team in place of Tyrell Malacia, while Diogo Dalot and David de Gea will maintain their positions, respectively.

The expected lineup for Manchester United, playing in a 4-2-3-1 formation, is as follows: De Gea; Dalot, Lindelof, Martinez, Shaw; Casemiro, Fred; Antony, Fernandes, Martial; Ronaldo.