Manchester United v Aston Villa - Premier League
Michael Carrick might not be able to call upon Matthijs de Ligt this season (Image: Getty)
Michael Carrick says there is no guarantee Matthijs de Ligt will feature again this season, though Manchester United remain hopeful the defender will recover from his back problem before the campaign concludes. Much has transformed at Old Trafford since the 26-year-old centre-back's most recent outing on November 30, when he helped Ruben Amorim's Red Devils to a 2-1 victory away at Crystal Palace. The pressure is cranking up on the Red Devils for their final eight games as they look to continue their much-improved form to secure a top-five finish.
But De Ligt remains unavailable as United, third in the Premier League and progressing towards a Champions League return, travel to Bournemouth on Friday. Head coach Carrick said: "Frustrating for Matta. He's obviously trying to work towards getting back, but it's just the back issue really that's proving difficult. We'll keep working as hard as we can to get him back as quick as we can."
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The intervals in a relatively sparse fixture list mean De Ligt is certain to remain absent until at least mid-April, though United sources informed the Press Association the objective is to have him participating again this season.
When questioned whether there was a possibility he might not appear before the season's conclusion, Carrick said: "Honestly, it's difficult to say just because it's taken that much time.
"I can't give you any more on it really. It's one of those things with backs that sometimes you think it's all right and then all of a sudden it's not quite right.
"We're just kind of being patient and working through it. We'll just have to see. We'll obviously give him time, but trying to get him back as quick as we can, but it's really difficult to say.
Manchester United Training Session
Matthijs de Ligt hasn't played since November (Image: Getty)
"I'm not trying to hide anything. Literally at the moment we don't know so we'll have to wait and see."
This issue casts a shadow over De Ligt's prospects of participating in the World Cup with the Netherlands, even raising queries about potential surgery.
"I don't want to get into that at this stage," Carrick commented on the possibility. "I think we'll obviously try and do whatever we can to help Matta and help get him back and whatever that takes.
"We're working through that now at the moment to be honest and (will) see. Hopefully he'll be back sooner rather than later and everything will be fine and we can move on."
De Ligt's absence has been exacerbated by fellow centre-back Lisandro Martinez's unavailability, but Harry Maguire has risen to the occasion, starting every match since Carrick's appointment.
The 33-year-old's performance has positioned him for a potential England recall when Thomas Tuchel announces his squad on Friday, sparking speculation about an extension to his Old Trafford tenure beyond the summer.
"There's obviously talks going on in terms of what the squad's going to look like come the end of the season and what it looks like after that," said Carrick, who is also out of contract at the end of the season.
"Harry's done fantastic for us. I think it's pretty obvious to say that. He's had a big impact on what we've done, so we'll have to see."
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