Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans will play for Manchester United in a competitive game for the first time when they take on Hull City at the MKM Stadium on Saturday.
Manchester United will be eager to kick-start the 2026/27 season with a bang when they lock horns with Hull City at the MKM Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Michael Carrick has a few pressing issues to worry about ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Karl Darlow has been recovering after an unspecified medical procedure, while Tom Heaton is struggling with a knock. Matthijs de Ligt remains unavailable as he continues his recovery from a lower back complaint, while Mason Mount is a short-term absentee.
Finally, Manuel Ugarte is a long-term absentee, and he will miss most of the 2026/27 season due to a knee injury. Meanwhile, during his pre-match press conference, Carrick provided fitness updates on Darlow, de Ligt, Mount, and Benjamin Sesko.
The Manchester United head coach said, “Yeah, Karl’s trained this week. He’s back training, so he’s in good shape. Matta’s obviously been out for a long period of time, but he’s training and it’s great to have him back. He won’t be involved, but he’s in good shape and moving in a good direction, so that’s a good bonus for us really, at this stage, to have him back.”
“Ben’s back training, so that’s, again, another positive. Looking forward to having him back around the group and getting him some minutes as well. And then [we’re] managing Mason a little bit, but he’s very close, so it’s touch and go for the weekend, really, if not, going into next week.”
“He’s picked up a little bit of a knock, it’s no dramas. Maybe it’s been a week or so, or 10 days or whatever it’s been. So, it’s nothing major. Yeah, of course, he’s missed some football over recent years and he wants to be fit, he wants to be in that full rhythm and he wants to stay fit. So, we’re doing our best to help him do that, but he’s a top player, Mase. It’s the same as the squad, we’ve got to manage the squad, there are going to be injuries through the season.”
Senne Lammens is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Manchester United lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him against Hull City on Saturday. The backline will feature Diogo Dalot, Harry Maguire, Ayden Heaven, and Luke Shaw.
As for the midfield unit, Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos will pair up in the double pivot, with Kobbie Mainoo an option off the bench. Bruno Fernandes will reprise the no. 10 role, with Matheus Cunha and Amad Diallo being the two wide attackers. Finally, Bryan Mbeumo will spearhead the Manchester United attack, with Marcus Rashford and Benjamin Sesko being backup options on the bench.
Predicted Manchester United XI: Lammens; Dalot, Maguire, Heaven, Shaw; Tielemans, Santos; Amad, Bruno Fernandes, Cunha; Mbeumo
