Benjamin Sesko will return to the Manchester United starting lineup when they host Brighton & Hove Albion at Old Trafford in the EFL Cup third round on Wednesday.
Manchester United will aim to secure a spot in the EFL Cup fourth round when they welcome Brighton & Hove Albion to Old Trafford on Wednesday night. Michael Carrick has no new injury concerns hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Luke Shaw is in contention to take on Brighton this week, with the veteran English defender pushing to be fit enough to feature from the get-go on Wednesday. However, Tom Heaton (hamstring), Matthijs de Ligt (lower back), Carlos Baleba (ankle), Manuel Ugarte (knee), and Amad Diallo (ankle) remain unavailable.
During his pre-match press conference, Carrick provided fitness updates on Shaw, de Ligt, and Amad. The English tactician said, “Amad is not quite close, in terms of days, you know. We’ll see as the week progresses but Matta [De Ligt] is just working his way back really.”
“So I don’t want to, because of the timeframe on it, and how it’s been, I don’t want to really put too much of a timeframe on it. Luke could [be available]. He could possibly be fit for Brighton but we’ll see. It’s not clear cut but it’s a matter of a few days rather than anything else.”
Carlos Baleba was a critical talking point during Carrick’s press conference. Providing an update on the summer arrival, the Manchester United head coach said, “Yeah, he definitely will be [back next month]. He’ll be back in and around the group at some point over the next week or so. So that means, after the internationals, he should be in good shape.”
“You know he’s came and, with being injured, then he’s desperate to get out there and be part of the group and training fully with the boys. And I’ve said before, he’s obviously a quality player. It’s why we brought him here and he balances off the dynamics of the midfield particularly well.”
Senne Lammens is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Manchester United lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him against Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday. The backline will feature Noussair Mazraoui, Leny Yoro, Ayden Heaven, and Patrick Dorgu.
As for the midfield unit, Andrey Santos will line up alongside Kobbie Mainoo in the double pivot, with Bruno Fernandes reprising the no. 10 role. Finally, Benjamin Sesko will lead the line for the home side against Brighton, with Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo being the two wide attackers.
Predicted Manchester United XI: Lammens; Mazraoui, Yoro, Heaven, Dorgu; Mainoo, Santos; Mbeumo, Bruno Fernandes, Cunha; Sesko