Manchester United face Fulham in the Premier League this weekend and Michael Carrick says there is a chance that two players could return from injury to feature
Michael Carrick says Carlos Baleba and Luke Shaw have half a chance of returning from injury for Manchester United in their Premier League match against Fulham.
Baleba, 22, has spent the start of this season recovering from an ankle ligament injury sustained soon after starting pre-season training with former club Brighton & Hove Albion. Shaw, 31, has missed the last three games across all competitions with a thigh injury, having started the opening three fixtures of the season.
Both, however, are now back in contention to make the weekend’s matchday squad. Below is the latest injury news and return dates…
Amad
A return from injury before the upcoming international break appears unlikely for Amad after not being called up by the Ivory Coast for their Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers later this month. The winger is now approaching a month on the sidelines after sustaining an ankle injury during the final week of pre-season training and will seemingly have another three weeks to continue his rehabilitation.
Speaking on Tuesday ahead of the Carabao Cup third round tie against Brighton at Old Trafford, Carrick said: “Amad is not quite close, in terms of days, you know. We’ll see as the week progresses.’
Potential return date: Tottenham Hotspur (H) on October 10.
Carlos Baleba
Approaching four months after playing his last match for Brighton against United on the final day of last season, Baleba could be about to debut for his new club at Craven Cottage. The midfielder did not feature in a single pre-season friendly for either side, so any involvement in west London would presumably be only as a substitute.
He has been back in training this week and attended the cup tie against his former employers on Wednesday. Carrick conceded on Friday that there is a chance that Baleba could be available this weekend for United’s trip down to the capital.
Potential return date: Fulham (A) on September 20.
Luke Shaw
Carrick is also cautiously optimistic about the possibility of Shaw being back in the squad. It is approaching a fortnight since he plast played, in the 2-2 draw with Everton, where he assisted the goal Benjamin Sesko scored before being substituted minutes before Ainsley Maitland-Niles equalised at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
United’s head coach said: “There’s a kind of a chance on both of them (Baleba and Shaw), really. Not totally 100% yet, but there’s half a chance, yeah. It is really short-term, to be honest, but it’s just working towards the game, so we’ll see how he (Shaw) is come the weekend.”
Potential return date: Fulham (A) on September 20.
Manuel Ugarte
Another player who will be spending this international break rehabilitating at Carrington rather than representing his national team is Ugarte. The Uruguay international sustained a knee ligament injury while playing for them at this summer’s World Cup, which required surgery in mid-July.
A return before the end of the season should be possible, barring any setbacks while recovering, but will not be before winter becomes spring. United have named him in their Champions League squad; however, that is seemingly because they had the space to do so, rather than any indication of when he could be back playing again for United.
Potential return date: 2027.
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Matthijs de Ligt
Approaching a year after last featuring for United, De Ligt is training again after having lower back surgery this summer, but remains unavailable to play at this stage. United are understandably exercising caution with the Netherlands international after such a sustained layoff and are unwilling to put a date on his return, as the focus remains on keeping him fit for the foreseeable future rather than rushing him back now.
Carrick said on Tuesday: “Matta is just working his way back, really. So I don’t want to, because of how it’s been, put too much of a timeframe on it.”
Potential return date: Tottenham Hotspur (H) on October 10.
Tom Heaton
Another player still recovering from a pre-season setback is Heaton. The veteran goalkeeper sustained a hamstring injury during the pre-season friendly against Paris Saint-Germain. Dermot Mee replaced him less than ten minutes into the second half and also deputised for the ex-England international in their Champions League match against Sabah at Old Trafford.
Senne Lammens was also backup to Karl Darlow on Wednesday against Brighton, rather than the third-choice goalkeeper coming in to give United’s number one a night off. There has been little in the way of an update about Heaton since he left the pitch in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Potential return date: Tottenham Hotspur (H) on October 10.
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