Man Utd injury news and return dates for Cunha, Shaw and De Ligt | Football | Sport

Manchester United all but secured their place in next season’s Champions League after claiming a 2-1 victory over Brentford on Monday. Michael Carrick’s side raced into a two-goal advantage at Old Trafford as Casemiro and Benjamin Sesko both found the net in the first half.

Although Mathias Jensen pulled one back late on for the Bees, it proved too little too late, as the Red Devils held firm to take three vital points. The result has cemented United’s grip on third place, extending the gap between themselves and Brighton in sixth to 11 points with just four games to go.

With the top five securing automatic Champions League qualification, United need just one more win to guarantee their place in Europe’s premier club competition.

However, it wasn’t entirely plain sailing for United. Matheus Cunha was absent from the matchday squad with a new concern, while Luke Shaw was forced off during the second half.

With that in mind, Express Sport has rounded up the latest injury updates and expected return dates for United’s walking wounded.

Matheus Cunha’s absence from the United squad for the Brentford fixture came as a surprise, having been a near-permanent fixture in the starting line-up since joining the club. He featured for the majority of the match in the win over Chelsea, having netted the decisive goal, but Carrick revealed ahead of kick-off that the Brazilian had picked up a minor hip flexor complaint.

Carrick said: “(Cunha) just had a bit of a sore hip flexor after the Chelsea game the other day. He was looking promising during the week, so we thought he might have been OK, but he just didn’t quite recover quick enough. It is nothing too serious, but unfortunately, he doesn’t make it tonight.”

Potential return date: May 3 vs Liverpool (H)

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Luke Shaw has enjoyed a consistent run of fitness this season, with the United left-back featuring in 34 matches so far, but he was unable to complete Monday’s victory against Brentford. He fell to the floor off the ball and limped off during the second half.

Carrick didn’t provide an update on Shaw’s condition after the match, but further clarity is anticipated later this week ahead of Sunday’s highly anticipated clash against Liverpool.

Potential return date: Unknown

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Matthijs de Ligt has endured a frustrating campaign, hampered by a lower back injury he picked up in November. The Dutchman hasn’t appeared since, though he is edging closer to a return to action.

He was photographed in training this week, posting images on Instagram with the caption: “Working hard, getting closer”.

Speaking earlier this month, Carrick said of his rehabilitation: “It’s different treatment and different exercises. He’s in the gym and doing work but he’s not quite on the grass and he’s not ready for that yet.

“That’s the process that unfortunately when you’re injured you’ve to go through. Sometimes it happens quick quicker than others and sometimes there’s things that don’t quite go to plan and it’s a bit slower.

“He’s just at that stage where he’s working through that at the moment and we’re trying to get him back right.”

Potential return date: Before the end of the season