Manchester United will aim to return to winning ways and secure a spot in the UEFA Europa League final when they welcome Athletic Club to Old Trafford for the semi-final second leg on Thursday night. Ruben Amorim has greeted a mixed bag of updates on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Matthijs de Ligt picked up a knock this past weekend that will keep him on the sidelines for the foreseeable future. The Dutch defender has not trained this week, and he has joined Lisandro Martinez (knee), Diogo Dalot (calf), Ayden Heaven (ankle), and Joshua Zirkzee (hamstring) on the sidelines.
In addition, Jonny Evans and Christian Eriksen have missed training this week. However, Noussair Mazraoui is back after being unavailable for the Premier League game against Brentford this past weekend. Meanwhile, during his pre-match press conference, Amorim provided a fitness update on de Ligt.
The Manchester United manager said, “It is not a big issue [for De Ligt]. That is a good thing. He cannot play tomorrow and he’ll not play on Sunday [against West Ham United at Old Trafford] but then we’ll check day-by-day. The rest, Ayden doesn’t recover. Toby is not available, I think that’s it.”
Interestingly, the Manchester United team news has revealed that Eriksen will likely be in the matchday squad despite missing training this week alongside de Ligt and Evans.
Meanwhile, Andre Onana remains an automatic pick between the sticks, with Manchester United lining up in a 3-4-2-1 formation in front of him against Athletic Club on Thursday. The central defensive unit will feature Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire, and Leny Yoro. Meanwhile, there is no looking past Noussair Mazraoui and Patrick Dorgu for the wing-back berths.
As for the midfield unit, Casemiro should return to the starting lineup, taking his place alongside Manuel Ugarte in the middle of the park. Finally, Rasmus Hojlund will lead the line for the home side against Athletic Club, with Bruno Fernandes and Alejandro Garnacho providing creative support. So, Mason Mount and Kobbie Mainoo will be backup options on the bench for the Red Devils.
Predicted Manchester United XI: Onana; Lindelof, Maguire, Yoro; Mazraoui, Ugarte, Casemiro, Dorgu; Bruno Fernandes, Garnacho; Hojlund
