As Ruud van Nistelrooy gives what could be his penultimate press conference as Manchester United’s interim boss, the issue of injuries was predictably one of the key discussion points.
As Ruben Amorim prepares to take over at Old Trafford, Van Nistelrooy will lead the Red Devils out against Greek champions PAOK in the Champions League before facing Leicester City at Old Trafford for the second time in the brief Van Nistelrooy reign the following Sunday.
The Manchester United legend will, once again, be denied the services of Tyrell Malacia, Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw.
Left-backs Malacia and Shaw have not played a minute all season. Maguire, meanwhile, has not been seen since the goalless draw with Aston Villa a month ago today.
But with Van Nistelrooy pointing out that all three players are heading in the right direction in their attempted recoveries, Amorim could be boosted by the return of a handful of defensive options – including Leny Yoro – once he begins life in the Man United dugout on November 11th.
Ruud van Nistelrooy gives update on injured Manchester United trio
“Different cases all of them,” Van Nistelrooy said during his Wednesday press conference. “Tyrell is the furthest at the moment [from returning but] he has been part of team training for a couple of weeks [with] no restrictions.
“So, its good for him to plan game minutes, maybe in the Under 21s. We have to see.
“Harry is still inside doing work on his rehab. Luke is doing pitch work today, and he is progressing there to do partial team training, hopefully soon
“For me, it is important to focus on the players who are currently fit, to manage them as good as I can. I think the players reacted really well with the Leicester game and the Chelsea game, and we are looking to build on that.”
Leny Yoro close to belated Manchester United debut
Man United confirmed earlier on Wednesday that Leny Yoro is finally training with the rest of the Red Devils team after an injury which kept the summer signing out of the season’s first few months.
Yoro is reportedly targeting the Arsenal trip on December 4th as the game in which he plans to make his long-awaited United debut. The Frenchman likely to be given the upcoming international break to further build up his fitness.
“He has been managed very well since his injury in pre-season,” Van Nistelrooy says of Yoro. “It’s a big moment for him, the first time he is back in team training. Obviously, we are going to get him back partially in the coming weeks and [we are] looking to get him on board as quick as possible.”
Van Nistelrooy played down concerns about Marcus Rashford’s fitness as the forward was spotted training on his own ahead of PAOK’s arrival at Old Trafford on Thursday evening.
“He did a bit of extra work before the session on his own,” adds the Dutchman, just 15 goals ahead of Rashford’s tally of 135 in Man United’s all-time scoring charts. “He joined the group [later on]. There is no other special news on that one.”
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