Manchester United were in training at Carrington on Friday morning ahead of their Premier League return against Everton next week.
Ruben Amorim oversaw Manchester United training at Carrington before his pre-Everton press conference(Image: Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images)
Most of the Manchester United squad were in training at Carrington on Friday as they prepared for the visit of Everton to Old Trafford on Monday night. The players were in good spirits as they made their way out onto a bright but crisp training ground this morning.
Before the session got underway, Ruben Amorim organised a gauntlet which has become a staple of the training sessions. Among those to run it were Matthijs de Ligt, who started his first international game for the Netherlands since 2024 during the break, and Senne Lammens, who played for Belgium after an impressive start to life at Old Trafford.
Once that team-building exercise was over it was time for the actual training session to begin. MEN Sport has taken a look at three things we noticed from the session ahead of the visit from Everton on Monday night.
Three players missing
Three players were notably absent from the training session this morning. Kobbie Mainoo did not travel to north London before the international break due to a knock and was missing again on Friday, albeit he could be involved in training on Saturday.
There was greater concern over the two other absentees. Harry Maguire “was not ready” to take part in the session, with no timeline given for when he could eventually be featuring in training again.
As for Benjamin Sesko, Amorim ruled him out after he missed training. “He is going to stay a few weeks out,” Amorim said. “I don’t know how long but it is not that serious we have to be careful with him.”
Harry Maguire receives treatment before being replaced by Leny Yoro against Tottenham
Martinez recovery continues
One welcome boost saw Lisandro Martinez continue his comeback. He looked more than comfortable back on the pitch and seems closer than ever to being back with the matchday squad.
When quizzed on the Argentine in his press conference, Amorim was cautious in giving a date for his return. He said: “I feel Licha is becoming close to being able to play. We need to be careful, he is going to struggle in the first minutes but he is clearly in a better position than he was two weeks ago.”
Lisandro Martinez is nearing a return to first-team action
Youngster involved again
After Mainoo missed out on the trip to Tottenham, Jack Fletcher was given the opportunity to travel down with the squad for the game. Amorim said pre-match that he didn’t want to lose the remarkable 88-year record of having an academy graduate in the matchday squad but he was confident, if called upon, Fletcher could do a job.
You can tell the youngster is comfortable around the first team players as he was spotted having a quick joke with Noussair Mazraoui during training. This will be a good sign for the United head coach as he prepares for the academy to play a greater role when players leave for the Africa Cup of Nations.
“It is a concern but we already knew. There is an opportunity for other players. We have also the Under-21s and we need to send a message in that time so we will see,” Amorim said when asked about the impending loss of players.
“But of course it is not ideal because they are so important in our team and we don’t have a long squad but again, our academy is for these moments and they will be ready.”
Jack Fletcher pictured arriving with the first-team squad ahead of Manchester United’s draw with Tottenham