Michael Carrick has issued the latest on his Manchester United squad as they prepare to face Arsenal in a tense Premier League battle on Sunday afternoon.
Michael Carrick will be in charge of his second Manchester United match since returning to the club, as a pivotal Premier League clash away at Arsenal awaits on Sunday.
United made a powerful impression on Carrick’s return last week, producing a superb display to secure a 2-0 victory over Manchester City at Old Trafford. The result could have been more emphatic, with three additional goals ruled out for offside.
It was among the finest performances supporters have witnessed in recent times and has generated fresh optimism ahead of the trip to North London.
Arsenal remain seven points clear at the top of the table, but a disappointing 0-0 draw with Nottingham Forest at the weekend checked their momentum. With United in pursuit of Champions League qualification, the meeting promises to be a tense and high-stakes affair on Sunday.
Carrick confirms De Ligt injury latest
United were without Matthijs de Ligt, Joshua Zirkzee, and Noussair Mazraoui for their brilliant win against City. The former two were out due to injury, while the latter was busy competing with Morocco at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Following the competition’s final, which saw Senegal secure a 1-0 win over Mazraoui’s side last weekend, the 28-year-old flew back to Manchester, although it has been unclear whether he has trained with the squad.
Speaking on Friday afternoon, Carrick provided the latest on his squad, stating, “No, everyone came through the game really well, actually. I can’t tell you anything apart from the obvious.”
When asked further whether De Ligt will be available again soon, the United boss said: “Hopefully, yeah. He had a bit of a setback initially before I arrived, I think, only small.
“Not so much a setback, I think it was just a little bit slower than initially hoped, but he’s certainly getting closer, but, hopefully, in the next couple of weeks, without putting an exact timeline on it, he’ll be back, and it’ll be great to have him back.”
Lacey possibly involved vs Arsenal
18-year-old Shea Lacey made his debut for United last month and has made a total of three appearances off the bench for the club, but was suspended for the City tie after being sent off against Brighton in the FA Cup a week earlier.
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However, after the player was not involved for the U21S against Sporting CP in midweek, many felt this could be a suggestion that Carrick has brought him straight back into the first-team fold.
The club then confirmed this through images of training, showing that Lacey was back involved in first-team training sessions, suggesting that Lacey could return to the squad when United travel to face Arsenal.
While it’s not expected that he will start the fixture in any capacity, he could be a pivotal option to have off the bench alongside Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Šeško.
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