Injuries, Suspensions, and a Sprinkle of Debuts…
Manchester United’s head honcho, Ruben Amorim, must have a degree in creative squad selection! He’s handpicked 18 brave souls for Thursday’s face-off with Real Sociedad at the Reale Arena. United’s got more injuries than a hospital ward, losing Harry Maguire and Manuel Ugarte faster than you can say “ouch!” Maguire was benched by an injury in Sunday’s thriller against Fulham, leaving the stage for new recruit Ayden Heaven—an ex-Arsenal prodigy—to make his debut.
But it’s not all doom and gloom! Toby Collyer has patched up his muscle woes just in time to join the travelling circus. He was a sight to see at Carrington, bounding around like a spring chicken. Also, Patrick Dorgu has finally done his time in the sin bin after his red card fiasco against Ipswich. Lucky for him, suspensions don’t cross international borders, so he’s good to go in sunny Spain!
Meanwhile, the list of the absent is as long as Erik ten Hag’s list of dreams: Altay Bayindir, Luke Shaw, and the infamous Kobbie Mainoo are still on the mend. Also missing is Chido Obi—he didn’t make the cut for United’s new Europa League action flick. The squad of hopefuls includes: Onana, Harrison, Mee as the guardian angels of the posts, and a mix of defenders, midfielders, and attackers ready to conquer Spain or have a good laugh trying.