Watford vs Manchester united FA Cup Semi-final

The first of this weekend's two FA Cup semi-final ties sees the Premiership pacesetters, Manchester United, meet the top-flight whipping boys, Watford, at Villa Park on Saturday afternoon. The Hornets' manager, Aidy Boothroyd, deserves immense credit for navigating his charges to this stages of the competition and, with nothing to lose, the Hertfordshire outfit will give it a good go. However, with a realistic treble within their scope, the rampant Red Devils should blow Watford away, assuming that the same side that crushed Roma in midweek turns up - not the side that looked leg-weary when suffering a shock defeat against Portsmouth last weekend. United were utterly breathtaking when tearing Roma to pieces at Old Trafford on Wednesday evening, winning 7-1, and for those that sympathise with statistics, it's been 21 years since Watford managed to gain a verdict over United, who are bidding to reach a record-breaking 18th FA Cup final. A major blow for Watford, who are generally priced up at 9/1 to win this game, is that they will have to make do without maverick goalkeeper Ben Foster, as he is ineligible to play against the club that own him. In his absence, it's likely that Richard Lee will step into the breach between the sticks. United, meanwhile, will once again be without striker Louis Saha, but Paul Scholes is back in the fold after serving a suspension. Saha's prolonged spell on the sidelines leaves Sir Alex Ferguson short of options up front. But, as we witnessed in the Roma game, this need not debar a flurry of United goals. Whether this game results in a Red rampage is largely dependant upon how the first 10-15 minutes shape up. For in-running punters, if it's goalless after the first quarter of an hour, it may be worth looking for a low ratio in the total goals/over-under market. Conversely, if United are quick off the blocks, they'll give Watford a bloody nose, and a resounding scoreline may ensue. With the prospect of playing Chelsea in a potentially mouthwatering final at the all new Wembley Stadium next month at stake, I expect the league leaders to be ruthless in their approach and set about dismantling a Watford side that they thumped 4-0 at the Theatre Of Dreams in the Premiership on January 31. After having to watch on as his team-mates terrorised Roma, I reckon the midfield maestro Paul Scholes will be up for this game in a major way, and Skybet's standout price of 3/1 about the 32-year-old in the anytime goalscorer market makes for exceptional value to my mind. The former England international has looked as sharp as ever this season and, against a notoriously weak defence, it's not hard to envisage him getting into some good positions in and around the box. When he pulls the trigger he's usually on target, and I'm confident he'll hit bullseye on Saturday. Verdict - 2pts Paul Scholes to score anytime @ 3/1 (Skybet)