United face five absentees for Everton trip as Baleba and Ugarte remain sidelined

Manchester United will be without at least five players when they face Everton at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Sunday, with manager Michael Carrick navigating a growing injury list ahead of the Premier League fixture.

Summer signing Carlos Baleba is among those unavailable after picking up an ankle problem during pre-season. Carrick addressed the issue in August, saying: “He’s got a little ankle issue. So, maybe a couple of weeks or so, maybe three weeks, we’ll see. But we knew that before, so it’s no major issue. It’ll be great to have him back when we can.”

Manuel Ugarte remains a long-term absentee with a knee injury, while defenders Matthijs de Ligt and goalkeeper Tom Heaton are also not expected to feature. There is further uncertainty surrounding Amad Diallo, who sustained a muscle injury in training and has no confirmed return date.

On a more positive note, Carrick indicated that Luke Shaw, who was withdrawn during last weekend’s victory over Ipswich Town with a fitness concern, is expected to be available. Mason Mount has also returned to training after recovering from a foot injury. “Mase is back around the group, which was great,” Carrick said. “Trained this week, so that’s a big positive for us.”

United go into the match on three points following that win over Ipswich and will be looking to build momentum under Carrick’s management.

Everton, meanwhile, will be without summer signing Christian Norgaard, who is yet to make his competitive debut for the club. Manager David Moyes offered a cautious assessment of the Danish midfielder’s progress last week. “Christian is still not making great progress at the moment,” Moyes said. “It’s not something where we’re probably going to get him back quickly, so we’ll just need to see how that develops.”