Carrick faces 15-player injury crisis as United host Tottenham at Old Trafford

Manchester United head into Saturday’s Premier League meeting with Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford carrying a significant injury list, with manager Michael Carrick confirming that Patrick Dorgu and Noussair Mazraoui will both miss the fixture after sustaining knocks during the international break.

“Patrick came off and looks like he’ll be out for probably a number of weeks,” Carrick said. “Nous [Mazraoui] came off and took a knock. He’s not quite right yet, so we’ll have to see how he is.”

Benjamin Sesko is also certain to be absent. The striker missed United’s draw with Fulham before the international break and withdrew from the Slovenia squad, with Carrick indicating the forward remains some way from a return. “Ben’s a little bit further away with the issue he’s got, so he won’t be ready,” the United manager added.

There will be late fitness checks on Marcus Rashford and Kobbie Mainoo, both of whom withdrew from the England squad at the start of the break. Carlos Baleba and Amad Diallo have returned to training but neither has featured for United this season, leaving their availability uncertain. Matthijs de Ligt continues to work his way back from a back injury that has sidelined him since last November, while Manuel Ugarte remains a long-term absentee with a knee problem. Goalkeepers Karl Darlow and Tom Heaton are also doubts.

“Carlos has improved, he’s trained a lot,” Carrick said. “Amad’s done a little bit of training, Marcus has done a little bit of training, Kobbie’s done a little bit of training. So, a little bit mixed really between the group.”

Tottenham arrive at Old Trafford with their own fitness concerns, though manager Roberto De Zerbi confirmed that Jan Paul van Hecke and Micky van de Ven are both fit to start despite picking up knocks on international duty. Playmaker James Maddison is available but suffered a setback in training during the week. “He is available but he lost three or four days in the beginning of this week and the end of the last week,” De Zerbi said.