Manchester United Injury Update: De Ligt, Mount, Sesko, and More

Manchester United are one week out from the Premier League opener at Hull, and Michael Carrick goes into the final stretch of pre-season with his squad held together by hope and ice packs.

AC Milan provide the last tune-up today. Carrick’s priority is no longer rhythm or sharpness. It’s survival. He needs his players walking back down the tunnel in one piece.

Several key names are already doubts or ruled out. Others are racing the clock. With Hull looming, United’s medical bulletin makes uneasy reading.

Matthijs de Ligt – back surgery hangover

• Injury: Back
• Last appearance: November
• Possible return date: Unknown

De Ligt hasn’t kicked a ball for United since November. Back surgery cut short his season, and the recovery has been steady rather than spectacular.

There is progress. He’s back on the grass and travelled with the squad to the Republic of Ireland for this week’s training camp, a clear sign he’s edging closer to full involvement. But there’s still no firm date for his competitive return.

For Hull, he’s out of the equation. For now, Carrick can only plan without him and hope the next update finally brings a timeline.

Tom Heaton – innocuous hamstring, serious consequences

• Injury: Hamstring
• Possible return date: Everton, September 6

Tom Heaton’s problem looked like nothing at first. A routine substitution against PSG in Gothenburg, no panic on the pitch, no immediate alarm.

The scans told a different story. The hamstring issue is more serious than anyone at United initially thought. As revealed in Notebook, Heaton will learn the full extent of the damage next weekend, but the expectation is a spell of at least a few weeks out.

United will have to navigate the start of the season without one of their experienced goalkeeping options, with Everton on September 6 pencilled in as a realistic target for his return.

Mason Mount – early scare, ongoing doubt

• Injury: Foot
• Possible return date: Hull, August 22 (squad, not starter)

When Mason Mount went off less than 20 minutes into the clash with PSG, it felt like a nightmare moment. A new season, a big game, a key player hobbling off.

The initial panic eased when he was later seen leaving the stadium without a limp. No crutches, no boot, no obvious sign of major damage.

But the knock has lingered. Mount sat out the friendly against Leeds and hasn’t been named in the squad to face AC Milan either. Missing the final two friendlies of the summer means one thing: he won’t start at Hull.

United still hope he can at least make the bench on August 22. For Carrick, that would be a small but significant boost.

Benjamin Sesko – striker stuck in limbo

• Injury: Shin
• Possible return date: Ipswich, August 30

Benjamin Sesko’s pre-season never really started. A shin injury picked up in the win over Liverpool in early May has kept him sidelined throughout the summer.

The internal plan was clear: get him some minutes in one of the final friendlies. That target has already slipped. His absence from the squad to face Milan confirms he’s missed that window.

Match sharpness is gone. With no football under his belt, Sesko is highly unlikely to be involved at Hull, even from the bench. Bryan Mbeumo is effectively guaranteed to start there, with Sesko’s more realistic aim being a place in the squad for Ipswich on August 30.

Manuel Ugarte – a brutal setback

• Injury: Knee ligament
• Possible return date: 2027

Manuel Ugarte’s injury is on a different scale. The midfielder was stretchered off in Uruguay’s World Cup defeat to Spain in June, suffering what he himself described as “the most serious injury a footballer can face”.

His own words laid bare the emotional weight of it. He spoke of “hitting rock bottom” and the pain of being forced off in one of the biggest matches in his country’s history, but also of using that low point to come back stronger and “start again every time you fall”.

For United, this is a long-term absence that stretches far beyond this season’s opening weeks. The possible return date of 2027 tells its own story. Ugarte’s road back will be measured in years, not months.

Karl Darlow – waiting game

• Injury: Unknown
• Possible return date: Not specified

Karl Darlow arrived at United already managing a pre-existing issue. The club doesn’t consider it serious, yet he has still not appeared in a single pre-season friendly squad.

The situation isn’t framed as alarming, but the clock is ticking. With Hull a week away, Carrick would have preferred to see him tested in match conditions.

Carrick’s balancing act

So here United stand: a week from Hull, still juggling timelines and medical reports. De Ligt working back from surgery, Heaton sidelined longer than expected, Mount and Sesko short of minutes, Ugarte facing years out, Darlow waiting for a green light.

Carrick’s first team sheet of the new league campaign won’t just reveal his tactical plans. It will show how well United have survived a pre-season that has asked as many questions of the physio room as it has of the dressing room.