Carrick Welcomes Key Returns for Manchester United Ahead of Hull Match

Manchester United will walk into the MKM Stadium on Saturday with more good news than bad on the injury front, as Michael Carrick confirmed several important players are back on the grass ahead of the Premier League opener against Hull City.

A week on from a chaotic 4-2 defeat to Milan in Wroclaw, where a cluster of first‑teamers were missing, United’s squad suddenly looks a little healthier.

Sesko back in the frame

The headline boost is up front. Benjamin Sesko, absent for the entire pre-season, has finally returned to full training at Carrington after the shin injury that wrecked the end of his debut campaign.

He played through the problem for much of last season before aggravating it in the win over Liverpool at Old Trafford in early May. That game turned out to be his last appearance of the campaign.

Now he is back.

“Ben [Sesko] is back training, so that's another positive,” Carrick said on Thursday. “Looking forward to having him back around the group and getting him some minutes as well.”

How many minutes, and how quickly, is the big call for Carrick as United look for a sharp edge on opening day.

Darlow steps up as Heaton waits

At the other end of the pitch, there is movement too.

Summer signing Karl Darlow, who has yet to make his United debut, has rejoined full training after surgery at the end of last season. The former Leeds United goalkeeper played right up until his contract expired and even turned out for Wales in early June before being ruled out for the summer.

With Radek Vitek leaving for Middlesbrough and Tom Heaton also sidelined, Dermot Mee has recently been backing up Senne Lammens. That pecking order may not last long.

“Karl has trained this week. He's back training, so he's in good shape,” Carrick confirmed, a line that strongly points to Darlow taking a place on the bench at Hull if he comes through the final sessions.

Heaton, by contrast, faces a spell out. The 40‑year‑old picked up what initially looked like a minor problem against Paris Saint-Germain a fortnight ago, when Mee replaced him without any major alarm. The diagnosis has darkened since then, and he is expected to miss at least a few weeks.

Darlow’s timing could hardly be better.

Ugarte the long-term absentee

There is no such quick fix in midfield for Manuel Ugarte.

The Uruguay international underwent knee ligament surgery after being injured at the World Cup this summer and will start the season as United’s only confirmed long-term absentee.

The club have confirmed the operation was successful and that he “will now begin the rehabilitation stage of his recovery and will be carefully managed by the club's medical and performance staff.”

Ugarte himself has already spoken of his determination to come back stronger, thanking Uruguay, Manchester United, his family, friends and supporters for their backing. His road back will run well beyond the early weeks of this campaign.

Mount ‘touch-and-go’

Mason Mount sits somewhere in between those two extremes.

The midfielder has been out since suffering a foot injury early in the 1-1 draw with PSG in Gothenburg, limping off after just 20 minutes and making way for Tyler Fletcher. He missed the following two friendlies, with Andrey Santos starting in midfield against Leeds and Youri Tielemans partnering Santos last weekend.

Carrick hinted Mount is close, but not guaranteed, to feature at Hull.

“We are managing Mason [Mount] a little bit, but he's very close,” he said. “So it's touch-and-go for the weekend, really, if not going into next week.”

A late decision, then, on a player United expect to be central to their attacking patterns this season.

De Ligt back on the grass, but not yet in the XI

At centre-back, there is another cautious step forward.

Matthijs de Ligt has returned to training after back surgery that ruled him out of the final six months of last season. He has not played since late November, and the long lay-off means United will not rush him back into competitive action.

“Matt [De Ligt] has obviously been out for a long period of time, but he's training and great to have him back,” Carrick explained. “Well, he won't be involved, but he's in good shape and moving in a good direction, so that's really a good bonus for us, really, at this stage, to have him back.”

De Ligt’s absence on opening day leaves United leaning on their established defensive core for now, but his return to the training pitch suggests the landscape at the back will shift as the early weeks unfold.

So United head to Hull with Sesko back in the mix, Darlow ready to rejoin the matchday squad, Mount on the brink, De Ligt edging closer, and Ugarte watching a long season begin from the treatment room. The tools are slowly returning to Carrick’s hands; what he builds with them from Saturday lunchtime will define United’s start to 2026/27.