Benjamin Sesko will be missing against Tottenham and could need surgery admits Michael Carrick.
The forward has been sidelined since he came off in the second half of United’s League Cup defeat to Brighton on September 16.
He missed the back end of last season with a shin problem but Carrick says that it is not exactly the same problem.
“It’s not the exact issue, it’s a similar area,” Carrick clarified. “But it’s not the exact same thing again.
“And we’re kind of still working through it a little bit to see how long the issue will be.
Read also
“We’re hoping that it’ll be soon, obviously, but at this moment it’s still not quite clear.
When asked if Sesko could go under the knife, Carrick said: “Yeah, there are different things to look at.
“I think he recovered really well actually from the initial one, and there was a lot of time, and sometimes things get thrown up.
“The body does certain things and we’ve got to react to that and try and get him back as quick as we can.”
Patrick Dorgu and Noussair Mazraoui will also be among United’s absentees as they look to kickstart their campaign against winless Tottenham.
Having returned to the Champions League during an impressive start to the year under the former midfielder, things have gone awry during a stuttering start to the new season.
United enter the weekend 12th in the standings having snatched a 1-1 draw at Fulham before an international break that saw Sesko, Marcus Rashford, Kobbie Mainoo and Karl Darlow withdraw from their respective national teams.
Dorgu and Mazraoui returned later with issues of their own, while Amad Diallo, Carlos Baleba and Matthijs de Ligt have been building fitness back at Carrington.
“It’s been a long time since we last sat here last,” United boss Carrick said. “A little bit mixed, really, through the internationals.
“Patrick came off and it looks like he will be out for probably a number of weeks. Nous came off and took a knock. He’s not quite right yet, so we’ll see how he is.
“Carlos is improving, he’s trained a lot. Amad has done a little bit of training, Marcus has done a little bit of training, Kobbie has done a little bit of training. Little bit mixed between them.
“Ben’s a little bit further away, with the issue he has got. He won’t be ready.”
United have just five points from their first five matches and face a tough upcoming schedule, with Champions League games at Atletico Madrid and Como bookending next Sunday’s trip to rivals Leeds.
It increases the importance on the clash with Spurs, but Carrick does not see the game against his former club differently to any other.
“Points-wise, I think played a lot better than that (shows) at times when you look at the games,” he said.
“They’re a very good team with some very good players. Obviously, assembled a squad this summer that’s a little bit different to maybe what they’ve had but they’re a good team.
“Just because of the points, I understand the question, but we’re not going into expecting anything less than their best version of what we know what they’re capable of.
“And, actually, they have shown (that) for large parts but probably haven’t had the results that maybe the performances deserve.”
Asked if it is a potential trap, deadpan Carrick said: “Just another game.”
loading
Loading
