United's squad submission exposes thin striker and left-back cover ahead of Everton trip

Manchester United are set to submit a 23-man Premier League squad for the first half of the 2024-25 season, with the list exposing two significant gaps: Benjamin Sesko as the sole recognised senior centre-forward and Luke Shaw as the only senior specialist left-back.

Premier League clubs are permitted to name up to 25 players in their registered squads, with a maximum of 17 permitted to fall outside the Home Grown Player (HGP) criteria. A player qualifies as a HGP if they were registered with an FA or FAW-affiliated club for at least three full seasons or 36 months before their 21st birthday. United have eight players meeting that threshold — Karl Darlow, Tom Heaton, Dermot Mee, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Mason Mount, Marcus Rashford and Amad — giving them sufficient HGP cover for a full 25-man list. However, departures during the summer window have left the club able to name only 23.

Notably absent from the registered list are Kobbie Mainoo, Leny Yoro and Ayden Heaven, all of whom qualify as under-21 players and are therefore exempt from registration requirements. Several academy graduates — Harry Amass, Jack Fletcher, Tyler Fletcher, Shea Lacey and JJ Gabriel — fall into the same category and remain available without taking up a squad slot.

The projected 23-man group includes goalkeepers Senne Lammens, Darlow, Heaton and Mee; defenders Lisandro Martinez, Matthijs de Ligt, Maguire, Shaw, Diogo Dalot, Noussair Mazraoui and Patrick Dorgu; midfielders Carlos Baleba, Andrey Santos, Youri Tielemans, Bruno Fernandes, Mount and Manuel Ugarte; and forwards Rashford, Bryan Mbeumo, Amad, Matheus Cunha, Sesko and Joshua Zirkzee.

While United do possess players capable of covering at left-back and centre-forward, the club acknowledges those options are better deployed elsewhere on the pitch. The squad list is expected to be published by the Premier League before Friday night’s fixtures, ahead of United’s trip to Everton on Sunday.

United will have the opportunity to revise their squad when the January transfer window opens on 1 January and closes on 1 February, giving the club a defined window to address both positions.