Michael Carrick has delivered an update on Mason Mount and Matthijs de Ligt as Manchester United wait on their two injured stars.
Mount, the England international, has been sidelined with an injury that he picked up in training, and it has forced him to sit out United’s last three matches - the wins against Tottenham and Everton, sandwiching a draw at West Ham.
De Ligt suffered a back issue in November last year and has not featured since.
It means that the Dutchman has not played under Carrick since the former midfielder took over the reins from Ruben Amorim.
However, Carrick issued a positive update on Mount, saying that the midfielder was back in training.
“Mason is getting closer,” Carrick said ahead of United’s clash with Crystal Palace.
“He’s on the grass and looking at being around it pretty soon. We’re just having to be patient, so we’re looking after him and making sure he’s ready for a big finish to the season.”
As for Dutch international de Ligt, the return timeline was slightly less clear.
“It’s part of football unfortunately, so we’ll get him back when we can,” Carrick explained.
“It's just the nature of the issue really. It’s a difficult one to pin down a timeline.
“He’s definitely improving, so we're just working towards that really. I can’t give you more at this stage.”
There was no update on Lisandro Martinez, who was ruled out of the 1-0 win over Everton with a calf problem.
Carrick explained that the Argentine would only be out short term, citing “one or two weeks” for his recovery.
That could, however, mean that he misses the home clash against Palace.
United take on the Eagles at Old Trafford this weekend looking to consolidate their place in the top four of the Premier League table.
