READING FC are on the road this weekend in a glamour FA Cup fourth-round tie against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
The Royals go into the contest against their Premier League opposition on the back of a 4-0 away defeat at Stoke City in the Championship last weekend.
Reading progressed from the third-round after beating fellow Championship side Watford 2-0, while Man United knocked out Everton.
Paul Ince will return to Manchester to face his former side where he played for six seasons under Sir Alex Ferguson, winning two FA Cups among several other trophies.
The Red Devils, now under the management of Erik Ten Hag, have started to turn a corner after nearly a decade of underwhelming seasons since Ferguson’s retirement.
United are currently in fourth position in the Premier League table on 39 matches from 20 games.
After beating city rivals Manchester City in the derby, United’s title hopes were dealt a blow last weekend at the Emirates after Eddie Nketiah scored a 90th minute winner to give Arsenal a 3-2 success.
United, who have won the FA Cup 12 times in their history, last won the competition in 2016 under Louis Van Gaal.
Jason Puncheon put Crystal Palace in front, but Juan Mata equalised with 10 minutes to go before Jesse Lingard netted the winner in extra-time to take the trophy.
Reading have faced Man United 22 times in the club’s history and have beaten them just once.
The Royals’ only triumph over United came in the FA Cup in 1927 with a 2-1 victory.
Reading last faced the Manchester club in January 2019 where they lost 2-0 at Old Trafford under the management of Jose Gomes.
The Berkshire side will be taking more than 3,000 fans to Manchester, while the kick-off time which was changed to 8pm on a Saturday is likely to have deterred many fans from attending due to no trains running back to Reading after the match.
Despite facing a trip back to his former employers, Royals boss Ince reiterated that he remains focused on their task at hand in the Championship rather than the cup competition.
Ince said: “There’s been no Man United talk, but the way we played you’d think a few players had their mind on the United game.
“I’m not really bothered about Man United if I’m honest.
“It’s a great draw for the fans and financially will be great for the club. But it’s another distraction and we’ve got injuries.”
