Erik ten Hag’s latest team news has ruled Anthony Martial out of Manchester United’s clash with Fulham on Sunday.
Martial has returned to the training pitch and was pictured working alongside his teammates at Carrington earlier this week.
But he did not form part of the 21-man squad which went to Betis and got a 1-0 second leg win in the Europa League last 16.
And Ten Hag has spoken to club media ahead of the FA Cup quarter-final tie at Old Trafford, about Martial and Antony, who also missed the Betis trip.
Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United team news update before Fulham clash
“So we have to talk about [it] and I think Anthony Martial will not be available and Antony dos Santos, we have to see how he will progress,” said Ten Hag.
Alejandro Garnacho, Christian Eriksen and Donny van de Beek are out of the game too, while Victor Lindelof and Marcel Sabitzer made comebacks in Betis.
United are clearly managing Martial extremely carefully and doing everything they can to avoid a setback in his recovery.
Of course, we all wanted Martial to back fit ahead of the international break, but he will now get two more weeks to get himself right.
United have been drawn against Sevilla in the Europa League, and Martial spent the second half of last season on loan with the La Liga outfit.
That loan spell did not go to plan, to the extent he was expected to leave this summer before Ten Hag took over and transformed Martial in pre-season.
It would be really intriguing to see Ten Hag’s United with Martial as the focal point on a regular basis, but he has just not been able to get fit and stay fit.
Hopefully, Martial can play a part in the run-in, and end the pattern of brief comebacks before extended spells on the sidelines, with United still chasing the FA Cup and Europa League crowns.