Sheffield United boss on a big FA Cup question: Wes Foderingham or Adam Davies
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After starting United’s first outing in the competition this season, which saw them overcome Millwall, Davies also featured in both instalments of their fourth round clash with Wrexham; saving a penalty as Paul Heckingbottom’s men advanced following a replay.
But Foderingham, recognised as the club’s first choice option between the posts, returned when Tottenham Hotspur were beaten at Bramall Lane earlier this month. Davies was receiving treatment for a muscle problem ahead of that tie but is since thought to have recovered, raising the possibility that he could be recalled to face Rovers.
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Hide AdHeckingbottom explained that tactical considerations will decide who gets the nod this time around, telling The Star: “There were lots of different reasons for bringing Adam in. A lot has been made of resting players but it’s not about that. It’s about the performance levels that you want. Sometimes, freshening things up is really important and whenever we’ve made changes, it’s always been because we think they give us the best chance of getting a win.”
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As well as reaching the later stages of the cup, United are also chasing automatic promotion from the Championship. After beating Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Wednesday, they finished the latest round of fixtures in second and six points ahead of third-placed Middlesbrough.
“With goalkeepers, the one thing that never gets spoken about, is that we need Davo to be ready,” Heckingbottom said. Fortunately for him, we’ve been playing him and that means he’s ready to perform. It’s all about what those minutes might mean.”
“We’ve been able to get him in the cup and the league, with Wes missing some games,” Heckingbottom added. “At the end of the season, if he hadn’t been able to do that, then there might have been a scenario whereby we’d have had to get him out there and it was his debut. That’s a big ask, in this situation.”