Harry Maguire, Benjamin Sesko and Mason Mount have been left out of Manchester United’s pre-season friendly against Leeds United on Wednesday night. Leny Yoro and Ayden Heaven start in central defence for United at Croke Park in Dublin, while Michael Carrick has left Maguire out of his squad completely.
Maguire’s Omission and Training Status
Maguire took part in full training on Tuesday and is not suffering from an injury. Carrick is keen to spread pre-season minutes to every member of his squad, which explains the decision to leave the defender out. The move allows younger players to gain valuable experience in a high-profile setting.
Elsewhere, Mason Mount is ruled out after he was forced off with a foot injury against Paris Saint-Germain in Gothenburg on Saturday. Sesko is yet to make an appearance in pre-season as he continues to recover from a shin injury.
Returning Trio and Squad Rotation
Marcus Rashford, Kobbie Mainoo and Lisandro Martinez reported back to pre-season training with United on Monday, but tonight’s friendly against Leeds comes too soon for the trio. Carrick has confirmed that Rashford, Mainoo and Martinez are in line to feature for United’s final pre-season friendly against AC Milan in Wroclaw on Saturday.
Speaking to MUTV before kick-off, Carrick stressed the importance of sharing the pre-season minutes in his squad, with some players further ahead than others who only recently returned from the World Cup.
Carrick’s Comments on Squad Management
‘We’ve got two or three different groups within our stage, the stages that the lads have been at in terms of when they’ve been back with us, how much training they’ve had, so we’re trying to get the balance right with that,’ Carrick said.
‘Giving younger players a chance as well, in a game and an occasion like this which feels, I have to say, it’s great to be here, feeling the energy of the stadium, I think that’s really good for the younger players to sample that tonight for their learning and to feel what it feels to play like for Manchester United in a game like this.
‘In terms of the ones who have just come back, some boys are not quite ready, Marcus, Licha [Martinez], Kobbie, they only came back a couple of days ago so we’ll save them until the weekend.
‘We’ve trained hard, the boys came in, Marcus, Lucha and Kobbie came in on Monday, they’ve had two or three sessions, they trained this morning really hard.
‘Recovery day tomorrow for everybody as a group. It’s important that we’ve got two or different stages but when we’re together as a group we stay like that so we’ll all recover tomorrow, train Friday and prepare for the game on Saturday, and again get the minutes and the balance right and then look strong going into next week.’
Confirmed Line-ups and Next Steps
The confirmed line-ups for the match are as follows: Manchester United – Lammens; Dalot (c), Yoro, Heaven, Amass; Santos, T. Fletcher; Amad, Zirkzee, Dorgu; Mbeumo. Subs: Heath, Honor, Mee, Armer, Shaw, Collyer, Fernandes, J. Fletcher, Tielemans, Cunha, Gabriel, Lacey, Thompson. Leeds United – Trafford; Muharemovic, Bijol, Bornauw; Bogle, Tanaka, Longstaff, James; Aaronson, Chadwick; Nmecha. Subs: Cairns, Mahady, Justin, Lienou, Rodon, Ampadu, Cresswell, Stach, Calvert-Lewin, Gnonto, Mills, Okafor, Piroe, Wilson.
Carrick’s rotation strategy aims to balance fitness and form ahead of the new season. The upcoming match against AC Milan on Saturday will likely see the return of Rashford, Mainoo and Martinez, as United look to finalize their preparations.
