Casemiro has not played since he was shown a straight red card against Southampton last month, his second sending off of the season and one that earned him a four-match ban.
That suspension has now been served, though it would not have applied in Europe anyway, and Casemiro is expected to come straight back into the side at Old Trafford for the first leg of the quarter-final tie.
However, Rashford will almost certainly miss out after he limped off late on in the win over Everton, signalling to the bench immediately after stretching for the ball and suffering what appeared to be a groin injury.
“We have to wait and see what it is and how bad it is,” Erik ten Hag told BT Sport after the match. “It doesn’t look well.”
While Rashford is set to be ruled out, Ten Hag was given a further midfield boost in that Everton match as Christian Eriksen made his first appearance since January when coming off the bench, and while the Danish star may not be risked from the start, the United boss has emphasised just how much he and Casemiro bring to the side.
“It is obvious and clear they are two very valuable players for us,” Ten Hag said.
“We all know how important the midfield department is. Over several games, we had to find a new balance and that is not easy at this stage of the season.”
Anthony Martial is in contention for his first start for three months as a straight replacement for Rashford after coming on and scoring against Everton, with the Frenchman set to get the nod over Wout Weghorst.
Casemiro’s availability will see one of at least one of Scott McTominay or Marcel Sabitzer drop out, and Luke Shaw remains a doubt with an injury picked up against Brentford. Tyrell Malacia is likely to start again, while Aaron-Wan Bisska could be preferred to Diogo Dalot.
Although Harry Maguire was given a rare start last time out, it is expected that he will return to the bench and Raphael Varane will come in to partner Lisandro Martinez.
Predicted Man United XI: De Gea, Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Martinez, Malacia, Casemiro, Sabitzer, Fernandez, Antony, Martial, Sancho
