Early Manchester United team news vs Arsenal: Erik ten Hag handed hopeful injury boost

Erik ten Hag may be handed a fresh injury boost as Manchester United prepare to face Arsenal in their third of five pre-season fixtures.

Manchester United‘s pre-season got off to a less-than-fantastic start, as the side lost 1-0 against Rosenborg in Norway. However, a 2-0 win over Rangers five days later showed that Erik ten Hag‘s team was starting to gather pace.

On Wednesday afternoon, the United squad travelled from Carrington to Los Angeles as the club prepare to play three pre-season friendlies against Arsenal, Real Betis, and Liverpool across the next two weeks.

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They will then fly back to the United Kingdom to face Manchester City in the 2024 Community Shield at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, 10 August, a few months after the two met in the FA Cup final.

United flew a 29-man squad to the USA for the three pre-season games, many of them from the academy. Multiple members of Ten Hag’s first team, such as Kobbie Mainoo, Alejandro Garnacho, and Bruno Fernandes, are all on holiday following their respective international exploits.

However, Ten Hag has one major boost: first-team member Harry Maguire could return to the matchday squad against Arsenal.

Maguire had been undergoing special fitness training at Carrington and was not involved in either of the Rosenborg or Rangers games, but has now returned to training with the full group and flying to the USA.

United have a limited number of first-team defenders in the current pre-season squad, so Maguire’s return is a much-needed boost, with him now being available alongside Jonny Evans, Victor Lindelöf, and new signing Leny Yoro.

In recent days, Rasmus Højlund, Christian Eriksen, and Scott McTominay have also returned to the squad. All three are expected to be involved against Arsenal in some capacity.

United are expected to debut their new blue 2024/25 away kit against Arsenal in the early hours of Sunday morning, with the game having a kick-off time of 01:00 BST on Sunday, 28 July.

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