Michael Carrick confirms two Man Utd stars are ruled out of Fulham game but £36.5m ace is back in training

Manchester United manager Michael Carrick has provided some team news ahead of the Premier League clash against Fulham at Old Trafford on Sunday.

The Red Devils have been terrific since Carrick took charge on an interim basis. They have secured statement wins over Manchester City and Arsenal.

The onus is on continuing the good form when the Cottagers visit Old Trafford the day after tomorrow.

Ahead of the encounter, Carrick revealed positive news on the fitness of Joshua Zirkzee.

The £36.5 million signing has been sidelined for the past few games with a minor injury, but the Dutchman is back in training before the Fulham clash.

Carrick told ManUtd.com: “Yeah, Josh is back training this week, which is good news. Obviously, first time… so he’s been out for a short amount of time, but first kind of training with us since we’ve been here, so that’s great to have Josh back.”

While Zirkzee is back in the mix, Patrick Dorgu has suffered a serious hamstring injury, as per Carrick. It has already been reported that he could be out for up to 10 weeks.

Alongside Dorgu, Matthijs de Ligt has yet to return to training with the Mancunian giants. He has been nursing a nagging back issue and has not played since November.

Carrick said on Dorgu: “Pat, unfortunately, he’s going to be out for a period of time. We’re still working through how long that’s going to be.

“We’ll have to see, [it’s] disappointing, he’s had such a big couple of weeks, Pat. We weren’t sure whether it was a little bit of cramp or whether it was something a little bit more serious and at the moment it looks a little bit more on the serious note.

He added on De Ligt: “De Ligt is not training with us. Just working through the process of getting him back as soon as we can.”

United have played brilliant counter-attacking football in the last two games. They truly outclassed the Cityzens at Old Trafford. Against Arsenal, they grew in confidence as the match progressed.

Matheus Cunha scored a stunning late winner at the Emirates Stadium, which ended the club’s wait of more than eight years for an away league victory over the Gunners.

Cunha looks poised to start on the left wing against Fulham with Dorgu sidelined.

Zirkzee has been a fringe player for the Mancunian giants under multiple managers. His situation may not improve, given Benjamin Sesko is ahead of him in the pecking order upfront.

Sesko himself has found himself on the substitutes’ bench in recent outings. We believe the Slovenian could be unleashed upfront against the Cottagers with a formation twist.

Meanwhile, the Fulham game may not be straightforward despite United having the better team on paper. The Cottagers could operate with a low defensive block on Sunday.

The Red Devils passed the test against the high defensive lines of Man City and Arsenal, and now face a different challenge as Fulham will be the side looking to counter-attack.

United will be eyeing a third straight league win for the first time since October. They are one point ahead of fifth-placed Chelsea and can boost their Champions League hopes with another victory.

Carrick has built his reputation with two fine wins over Man City and Arsenal. If United extend the streak this weekend, the 44-year-old could be talked up further for the permanent manager role.

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Article written by Sri Aswin .