Manchester United will look for a huge three points on Sunday when they welcome league leaders Arsenal to Old Trafford, in what is already looking like a mouth-watering tie in this early stage of the Premier League season.
United will be hopeful of summer signings Casemiro and Antony being given their full debuts, although a return to the matchday squad for Anthony Martial is now doubtful, as Erik ten Hag grows closer to operating with a fully fit team.
Here is all you need to know about the current state of play at Old Trafford and the expected return dates for those on the sidelines.
Anthony Martial
United's French forward returned from injury for just one game when he featured in the 2-1 victory over Liverpool last month, before he was yet again ruled out after picking up another injury at this early stage of the season.
Martial came off the bench to feature for 44 minutes of that contest against the Reds and grabbed the assist for Marcus Rashford's winner, before it was revealed that he was suffering from an Achilles problem. In his most recent update, Ten Hag confirmed that Martial will not feature against the Gunners on Sunday.
Speaking on Thursday, Ten Hag said: "'Anthony will not be involved on Sunday. I cannot tell at this moment [how long he will be out]."
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Facundo Pellistri
United youngster Facundo Pellistri has been forced out of United’s first five games of the season after picking up an ankle sprain during the 1-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid in their penultimate pre-season friendly of the summer at the end of last month.
Pellistri came on as a 76th minute substitute for Anthony Elanga in that game, but was forced off through injury just 15 minutes later and will continue to remain on the sidelines until early October, meaning he is once again ruled out of Sunday’s clash with Arsenal.
Speaking on August 12, Ten Hag said: "The prognosis is that he will not return before September."
Brandon Williams
United left back Brandon Williams continues to recover from the ‘small issue’ that he picked up over the summer which ruled him out of every pre-season game and the opening five fixtures of the 2022-23 campaign.
In July, the 21-year-old took to Instagram to say: "My injury, I told myself to deal with it and bounce back stronger. My goal is to play in-front of the best fans in the world", yet it is expected that he will continue to miss out on Sunday, with his future at the club yet to be decided.
However, Williams is said to be nearing a return to match fitness and is prepared to reassess his options when the January transfer window opens, due to the poor form of United’s current full back options and his ability to operate at both right back and left back.
