Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford
Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford
Manchester United boss Michael Carrick has shared an update on the fitness of his squad ahead of Sunday's Manchester derby against Man City.
The Red Devils claimed a dominant 4-0 win over Sabah in the Champions League on Thursday night thanks to goals from Matheus Cunha, Bruno Fernandes, Benjamin Sesko, and Lisandro Martinez, as the team put in a top display on their return to Europe's top competition.
But following the game there were some injury concerns for members of the squad, and Carrick has shared an update on the side.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference following the game with Sabah, Carrick revealed that Shaw wasn't 100% ready for the game hence his absence on Thursday, and he remains a doubt for Sunday's clash.
"We'll have to see," Carrick said about the left-back.
Bruno Fernandes was seen limping out of the stadium after the game, despite playing the full 90 minutes, which sparked concern over his fitness for the game.
But Carrick eased those concerns, saying that he was fine and that he would have been taken off had more substitutions been available.
"We only had five subs, so we had to make certain decisions on what that looked like," he explained.
"But, of course, he's like anybody else. He has played an awful lot, but I think we're developing the group and the squad to be able to accommodate that in different ways.
"Tonight was just one of those things. There were decisions to be made and he ended up staying on.”
Amad Diallo, Matthijs De Ligt, Carlos Baleba, and Manuel Ugarte remain unavailable due to injury.
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Man Utd Injuries
Player
Amad
Matthijs De Ligt
Carlos Baleba
Luke Shaw
Manuel Ugarte
Tom Heaton
Carrick: Rashford Ready for Man City
Marcus Rashford
Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith
Rashford has been in fine form this season since returning from his loan spell at Barcelona last year, but the England international was an unused substitute in the Champions League clash with Sabah.
Cunha and Sesko both scored in the game, while Mbeumo registered an assist and scored in his previous two appearances, leaving the manager with a dilemma for the Manchester derby on Sunday. But Carrick confirmed that Rashford was simply rested in midweek rather than dropped, and said he would be ready for Sunday if selected.
"A little bit of that, yeah, and trying to share the load a little bit, to a point, as well," he said.
"We've got good options, so we're trying to keep everyone fresh, but with a point where Ben [Šeško] can get good minutes tonight [against Sabah] and get him up to speed.