Manchester United Injury Update: De Ligt, Mount, and More Ahead of Season Opener
Manchester United are one game and seven days away from the real thing.
Hull away. Premier League opener.
Before that, AC Milan in the final pre-season outing – and Michael Carrick will watch every challenge through his fingers.
His squad is already carrying bruises and long-term scars. Another setback now would not just be frustrating; it would shape his first team-sheet of the season.
Here’s where United stand on the treatment table.
Matthijs de Ligt – back
De Ligt has not played for United since November. Back surgery cut his season short and his recovery has been slow and careful.
There is progress. He is back on the grass and travelled with the squad to the training camp in the Republic of Ireland this week, involved around the group again. But there is still no indication from the club of when he will be ready for competitive action.
- Possible return date: Unknown
Tom Heaton – hamstring
What looked like a routine substitution in Gothenburg has become something more serious.
Heaton came off against PSG with what initially appeared a minor issue and was replaced by Dermot Mee without alarm. Only later did the true extent of the damage emerge.
As revealed in Notebook this week, Heaton will learn the full diagnosis next weekend, but he is already expected to miss at least a few weeks.
- Possible return date: Everton, September 6
Mason Mount – foot
When Mount walked off less than 20 minutes into the clash with PSG, the fear was immediate: this could be bad.
The first relief arrived quickly. He left the stadium on foot, no limp, no protective boot. That calmed the worst of the anxiety, but it has not put him back on the pitch.
Mount sat out the friendly against Leeds and has not been named in the squad to face AC Milan either. With both of United’s final friendlies gone, Carrick will not be able to start him at Hull. The hope now is that he recovers in time at least to take a place on the bench.
- Possible return date: Hull, August 22
Benjamin Sesko – shin
Sesko’s summer has never really started.
The Slovenian striker has not played a single minute of pre-season after a shin injury sustained in the win over Liverpool in early May. The plan, as outlined in Notebook earlier in the summer, was for him to feature in one of the later friendlies. His absence from the squad to face Milan confirms that target has slipped away.
Match sharpness is gone, and with Hull looming, Bryan Mbeumo is nailed on to lead the line. Sesko has been out too long for Carrick to realistically throw him straight into the opening-day squad.
Ipswich, a week later, now looks like the first realistic point for his inclusion.
- Possible return date: Ipswich, August 30
Manuel Ugarte – knee ligament
Ugarte’s situation is the bleakest of all.
The midfielder suffered a serious knee ligament injury in Uruguay’s World Cup defeat to Spain in June and had to be taken off on a stretcher. He later spoke about the emotional weight of the moment on social media, calling it the most serious injury a footballer can face and reflecting on “hitting rock bottom” in one of the biggest games of his life.
The road back will be long. United are planning without him for the foreseeable future.
- Possible return date: 2027
Karl Darlow – unspecified issue
Darlow arrived at United already managing a pre-existing problem.
The club does not consider it a major concern, but it has been enough to keep him out of every pre-season friendly squad so far. His situation is being handled with caution as the medical staff look to clear him fully before involving him.
- Possible return date: Not specified
One week out, Carrick’s biggest opponent isn’t Hull or AC Milan. It’s the clock, the treatment room, and the hope that this list doesn’t grow any longer before the first whistle of the new season.
