United boss Garry Monk admits he is reluctant to make too many changes for Tuesday night’s EFL Cup Round Three tie at home to Blackburn Rovers as he looks to maintain the momentum gained by the recent back-to-back league victories.

However, Monk is hopeful of having captain Liam Bridcutt available for selection after the midfielder missed Saturday’s win at Cardiff City with a foot injury sustained during the second half of last week’s Championship instalment of this fixture.

Elsewhere, the game will come too soon for full-back Gaetano Berardi despite his return to full training on Monday evening.

Monk made 11 changes to his team in the last round of the competition, with United going on to win 1-0 away to Luton Town to set up Tuesday’s clash, but the indications given at his pre-match press conference were that wholesale changes would not be on the agenda this time around.

“I’m going to pick a team that can win the game,” he said. “I want to keep this momentum with us.

“I’ll pick the strongest team possible in terms of freshness and who will be ready. But I don’t particularly want to make too many changes.

“I’ll have a look at them tonight and make decisions. But whoever goes out there will be ready – everyone understands how we work and what’s expected of them.

“Everyone has already played minutes this season, so whatever team goes out there will be ready to put a performance on.

“Everyone came through Saturday unscathed, so that’s a positive for us.

“Berardi joins back in with training tonight (Monday) – he’ll be back out on the pitch with us but obviously not quite ready physically yet.

“Liam (Bridcutt) wasn’t quite right for the weekend but we’ll look at him tonight. The swelling has gone down and we’ll make an assessment on all the players after training.

“The reason he didn’t play at the weekend was because there was just too much swelling around the foot. That’s gone down not, it’ll just be whether it’s pain free or if the pain’s at a threshold for him to play with. We’ll have a look at that tonight.”

Monk also insists his players are staying grounded after taking six points from their last two games and that Tuesday’s focus is on keeping that run of form going.

“We always believed and have been confident in what we’ve been doing,” said the United boss. “But results help the environment and everything that goes with it.

“We’re very balanced – I spoke to the players after the game and we’re not going to get carried away with anything. There’s a lot of hard work still to do and a long, long way to go to get to where we want to be.

“But these type of results will always help with the confidence and create a good environment. But we have to be focused in these moments.

“The good thing about having that momentum is that you have a chance to fight to keep it. We have to fight to keep it going and that takes a lot of focus and a really good attitude. That’s really what my message was to the players after the game on Saturday.

“Tuesday is the next game and we always want to win. Keeping the momentum means dealing with whatever’s in your path and we have to fight to try and keep that going.

“It’s a cup game but it’s just as important in terms of keeping our momentum – that’s something that you really have to grasp when you have it.

“We’ll be ready, we’re really focused and we’re looking forward to Tuesday night. It’s a chance to progress in the cup.

“Especially in this competition, you can get to the later stages before you know it. But we have to be focused on Tuesday’s game and put on a performance at home.”