Michael Carrick has thrown his feelings around one key detail behind Matthijs de Ligt after the Manchester United defender’s long-term injury absence in their campaign.
Matthijs de Ligt has missed the entirety of Michael Carrick’s interim head coach reign so far after the centre-back was sidelined with a back injury in the 2025-26 season.
The 26-year-old Dutch defender’s last appearance came under Ruben Amorim during Manchester United’s 2-1 Premier League win over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
Since Man Utd’s comeback victory over Crystal Palace last November, the injured De Ligt has missed 29 matches in a row across all competitions for the Red Devils.
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Michael Carrick asked about Matthijs de Ligt requiring possible surgery ahead of Man Utd’s return to action
Manchester United will return to Premier League action on Monday evening, with the Red Devils hosting Brentford for an 8pm kick-off time at Old Trafford.
United legend Michael Carrick held his pre-match press conference at the Carrington training complex and was asked for an update on the condition of Matthijs de Ligt.
The 44-year-old Red Devils interim boss admitted that surgery might not be required for De Ligt after the Netherlands international has been back on the training pitch.
“He’s back on the grass at the moment, in a small capacity, but he’s working towards it,” Carrick said, as per Manchester United’s official website.
“So that’s positive, so yeah, we’re all hoping that it keeps going in that direction.”
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Michael Carrick cannot predict the future around Matthijs de Ligt amid Man Utd missing the defender’s influence
Carrick has been forced to rotate through his United first-team centre-backs in recent weeks due to both suspensions and injuries to key players.
The Red Devils legend insisted that he is “hoping” to have former Bayern Munich and Juventus defender De Ligt return to Man Utd as soon as he possibly can.
“What the future looks like, I can’t really get involved, because I’m not sure myself what that looks like,” Carrick explained.
“In terms of Matthijs, he’s working towards being fit again. He’s doing a little bit on the grass and it’s progress, but there is not much else I can say.
“It’s one of those injuries and he’s rehabbing, he’s working to get fit. So, we’re hoping to have him back as soon as possible. There is not much I can add on that.”
De Ligt has made 14 appearances across all competitions since the start of the 2025-26 campaign and the former Ajax defender has netted once for Man Utd.
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