Michael Carrick has ten names on his injury list as Manchester United host a Tottenham side still waiting for their first win of the season. The match at Old Trafford kicks off on Saturday at 6.30pm Norwegian time, pitting the teams in 12th and 20th in the Premier League against each other.
According to Sports Illustrated, Matthijs de Ligt (back) and Manuel Ugarte (knee) are out. De Ligt is back in training but is not ready to return. As many as eight players are doubtful: Karl Darlow, Amad Diallo (ankle), Patrick Dorgu (hamstring), Tom Heaton (hamstring), Kobbie Mainoo, Noussair Mazraoui, Marcus Rashford (hip) and Benjamin Šeško (calf). Goal has the same ten names on its list.
Mainoo and Rashford are expected to return, but neither is certain to feature. Šeško says he is “getting there”, but is not considered a likely starter. If Mainoo is not ready, Carlos Baleba could make his debut after recovering from an ankle injury and playing in a behind-closed-doors friendly.
It has been quite fine margins that have tipped things the wrong way so far this season.
Michael Carrick, according to Sports Illustrated
Carrick added that the team are not disheartened because “we are showing some good signs”. The results tell a different story. United have one win from five league games, a 5–2 victory over Ipswich, and have since lost 1–0 at home to Manchester City and been knocked out of the League Cup with a 3–2 defeat to Brighton. Before the international break, Matheus Cunha salvaged a 1–1 draw away at Fulham in the 89th minute. The bright spot is a 4–0 win over Sabah in the Champions League.
Tottenham have scored two goals
Roberto De Zerbi’s side are bottom with two points after five matches. Both league goals came in the 3–2 home defeat to Aston Villa, while they failed to score in the other four games. In the League Cup, Spurs lost 3–1 to Liverpool.
The injury list is long here too. According to the Evening Standard, Pedro Porro is out with a hamstring injury and hopes to return before the end of October. Xavi Simons and Wilson Odobert are recovering from cruciate ligament surgery, with Simons not expected back until the new year at the earliest. Mykhailo Mudryk is out with an ankle injury, while Dejan Kulusevski has been training with the first team since September after a year of knee problems.
Captain Micky van de Ven had his hand trodden on during the Netherlands’ win over Serbia and had to leave the pitch feeling dizzy, but is expected to be fit. Team-mate Jan Paul van Hecke suffered a foot injury in the same match and withdrew from the Netherlands squad. He is doubtful.
United won 2–0 last time
The last time the teams met at Old Trafford, on 7 February this year, United won 2–0 with Carrick on the touchline. Since then, both clubs have struggled into the autumn. We wrote about the challenge shared by Carrick and De Zerbi before the international break. Now the injury lists are even longer, and both remain close to the relegation zone.