Old Trafford will play host to an exciting match between Manchester United and Swansea in the third round of the FA Cup on Sunday, the 5th of January.

Preview: Man United hoping to make amends at home

The Red Devils had their six match winning streak come to a shuddering end as they suffered a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Tottenham at home. The new year marked United’s fourth defeat at home in the league this season, rounding of a disappointing display from David Moyes’ side in front of their own fans.

Apart from defeats at the hands of West Bromwich Albion, Everton and Newcastle, Man United have also drawn their matches at home against Chelsea and Southampton which has left the Red Devils with just four victories at home, amassing just 14 points from a possible 30. Their antics have resulted in Man United having a worse home record than Hull and Stoke this season.

 

Defender Johnny Evans has expressed his concerns over United’s poor form at their own turf and has lamented their persistence to attack too much as the sole reason for their inconsistency at home.

“Our home form hasn’t been good, our away form has and we have to get the balance right,” said the defender.

"It’s hard to explain -- we left ourselves too open to the counter-attack against Spurs and they caught us on the break twice, whereas away from home we’re a bitmore defensive in our set-up.”

"We want to entertain our fans and score goals. I think that’s to our detriment a bit: maybe we should be a bit more patient."

United have won the FA Cup 11 times, this is more than any other English team, however last time the Red Devils won the trophy was ten years back and manager David Moyes will be hoping to change that this season. Given Man United’s position in the league this season which has seen them trailing leaders Arsenal by 11 points, the former Everton manager would want to excel as much as possible in Cup competitions with Moyes’ side still in the running for the Capital One title.

United have only once failed to make it to the fourth round of the FA Cup in 28 attempts, but with a Capital One Cup semi-final just 48 hours after the match at Old Trafford it will interesting to see how Moyes fields his team.

Swansea on the other hand are not in a buoyant mood either. The Swans are winless in their last seven matches and are set to face United twice and then Tottenham in what is a difficult fixture list for Michael Laudrup's side. The Jacks have fared poorly in the league so far and are currently 13th in the league just four points shy of the relegation zone. With Swansea knocked out of the league cup it remains to be seen whether Laudrup prioritises remaining in the top flight or going far in the FA Cup, his team selection on Sunday might give an insight to his plans.

Last time the two sides met was on the first day of this season, which saw United scoring an emphatic 4-1 victory at the Liberty Stadium. Swansea lost Pablo Hernandez through injury in their last match against Man City, who joins compatriot Michu on the injury table.

United’s injury list seems to be taking its toll with talismanic forward Wayne Rooney the latest inductee. The 28 year old has been suffering from groin problems and will have a test to reveal the extent of his injury.

Apart from Rooney, United will also be without Robin Van Persie (groin and thigh), Phil Jones (knee), Rafael (groin), Marouane Fellaini (wrist) and Nani (hamstring), whereas Hugo Lloris’ challenge on Ashley Young which went unnoticed has resulted in a shoulder injury for the former Aston Villa man who has also been ruled out of Sunday’s fixture.

Where to watch the match – live stream, start time, TV channels, Live scores

Watch Man United vs Swansea live on Sunday, January 5, 2014:

In Canada at 11:30 ET on Sportsnet World

In UK at 16:30 BST on BT Sport 1, BBC Radio 5 Live

In US at 11:30 ET on FOX Deportes, Fox Sports 1, SiriusXM FC, Fox Soccer 2Go

Fans in Australia can catch the action live on ESPN2 Australia.

For complete details of match listings and live scores, visit the Man United vs Swansea match page.