Bulked-up Harry Amass pushes to fill United's left-back void ahead of pre-season

Harry Amass arrived back at Manchester United’s Carrington training base this week looking noticeably more powerful, signalling a deliberate effort by the teenage left-back to force his way into new head coach Michael Carrick’s plans for the season ahead.

With Luke Shaw the only senior left-back on United’s books — and Shaw himself out of contract at the end of the campaign — there is a genuine opening for Amass to stake a claim. The club has explored external options, including Newcastle’s Lewis Hall, but the academy graduate appears determined to make that search unnecessary.

Amass has made seven first-team appearances for United totalling 325 minutes, having broken through under Ruben Amorim after Erik ten Hag — who took him on the 2024 pre-season tour aged 17 — felt he lacked the physical presence for senior football. The left-back cannot change his height, but his approach to this off-season suggests he has addressed the physicality concern head-on.

His path to the first team has not been straightforward. A loan spell at Sheffield Wednesday in the first half of last season was described as character-building given the turmoil at Hillsborough, but he performed well in difficult circumstances. A January move to Norwich City, intended to give him regular football in a promotion push, was derailed almost immediately when he suffered a hamstring injury after just 15 minutes for the Canaries, ruling him out for the rest of the season.

That lost six months is significant context for a player trying to establish himself, but pre-season now offers a reset. Amass is set to feature in United’s opening tour fixtures against Wrexham in Helsinki and Rosenborg in Trondheim, giving him a direct opportunity to catch Carrick’s eye.

Patrick Dorgu is another left-back option in the squad, though Carrick has used the Dane predominantly on the wing. With United returning to the Champions League, the manager will require greater depth across all positions, and Amass — if he can translate his physical transformation into consistent performances — appears well-placed to provide it on the left side.