Charlie Hodgson will make a welcome return to the Sale line-up when they take on Cardiff Blues at Edgeley Park.
Director of Rugby Kingsley Jones has opted to bring his number ten back in alongside Dwayne Peel, who started last week's defeat to Toulouse.
The premature team announcement could be viewed as a statement of intent from the Welshman after his largely second-string XV for their Round One fixture against the French giants.
"This is a massive game for us. Not just in terms of giving ourselves a chance to advance out of the pool stages of the Heineken Cup, but we owe our supporters a big performance at home," he said.
And despite reports of injuries amongst the Cardiff Blues squad, Jones has little doubt that Friday's game will provide a real challenge.
"Cardiff have a very strong squad and the experience of reaching the semi-finals in this competition. If they have injuries, they also have quality players that can cover all their positions.
"They will be coming here expecting to win."
Meanwhile, British and Irish Lions prop Gethin Jenkins will captain Cardiff Blues when he makes first appearance of the season.
Jenkins required shoulder surgery after returning from the Lions tour of South Africa and Cardiff's coach Dai Young labelled his return to action as a "massive boost".
The Blues are without Xavier Rush (flu) as well as Gareth Thomas, Paul Tito and Bradley Davies, who were all casualties of last weekend's victory over Harlequins.
"Gethin has worked his socks off to get back," Young told Media Wales.
"Giving him the captaincy is perhaps something of a surprise but he sees that as a role he wants to take on in the future.
"When you have injuries you need someone from the front to lead and Gethin will relish the experience."
Jenkins' return to action is also big news for Wales coach Warren Gatland just three weeks before they tackle New Zealand at the Millennium Stadium.
The teams:
Sale Sharks: 15 Nick MacLeod, 14 Mark Cueto, 13 Andy Tuilagi, 12 Lee Thomas, 11 Ben Cohen, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Dwayne Peel, 8 Sisa Koyaimabole, 7 David Seymour, 6 Carl Fearns, 5 Dean Schofield, 4 James Gaskell, Eifion Lewis Roberts, 2 Marc Jones, 1 Andrew Sheridan.
Replacements: 16 Neil Briggs, 17 Gavin Kerr, 18 Jack Forster, 19 Sean Cox, 20 Luke Abraham, 21 Richard Wigglesworth, 22 Mathew Tait, 23 Chris Bell.
Cardiff Blues: 15 Ben Blair, 14 Leigh Halfpenny, 13 Tom Shanklin, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Tom James, 10 Sam Norton-Knight, 9 Richie Rees, 8 Andy Powell, 7 Robin Sowden-Taylor, 6 Sam Warburton, 5 Scott Morgan, 4 Deiniol Jones, 3 Taufa'au Filise, 2 Gareth Williams, 1 Gethin Jenkins (c).
Replacements: 16 T Rhys Thomas, 17 Darren Morris, 18 Gary Powell, 19 Ben White, 20 Rhys Williams, 21 Gareth Cooper, 22 Ceri Sweeney, 23 Richard Mustoe.
Date: Friday, October 16
Kick-off: 20:00 BST
Venue: Edgeley Park
Referee: Christophe Berdos (France)
Assistant referees: Eric Gauzins (France), Laurent Cardona (France)
Television match official: Daniel Dartigeas (France)
Assessor: Gianni Romano (Italy)
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