Irwin: Reds Can Go All The Way In The FA Cup

Denis Irwin believes Manchester United’s players will seriously fancy their chances of winning the FA Cup this season if an upset can be avoided against Cambridge United on Friday night.

Victory over the League Two outfit in the fourth round would take Louis van Gaal’s men to within four games of lifting the famous trophy for a record 12th time.

Irwin, who won the cup three times as a player, says the Reds won't underestimate the U’s, especially after being well tested by third-tier Yeovil Town in round three.

Asked if United could win the cup for the first time since 2004 this year, the legendary left-back told ManUtd.com: "I don’t see why not. We saw from the Yeovil game how tricky away matches against lower-league opposition can be, but we’ll have learned lessons from that. So if we can get through on Friday, all of a sudden we’re into the fifth round and we’ll be starting to fancy it.

"It is the shortest route to winning something this year but you always need a bit of luck in the cup – you need things to go for you when you’re not playing well. We have a great heritage in the cup and still have the most wins along with Arsenal so let’s hope this is our year."

Van Gaal’s injury problems are starting to ease, with only Robin van Persie and Ashley Young missing from last weekend’s victory at QPR. And Irwin feels we’ll see a "clearer picture of what this season holds for us" if everyone can stay fit over the coming weeks.

The Irishman continued: "Other than David De Gea, hardly any of our players have gone through the season without being sidelined at some point. We need a run of games where we don’t pick up any injuries and until the manager gets that stability, I don't think we can expect to see the very best of United this season."