The Manchester United line-up Michael Carrick must pick vs Tottenham is clear - but there's a problem
Manchester United return to Premier League action on Saturday when they host bottom club Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford
Manchester United return to Premier League action this weekend when they host Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford. While Roberto De Zerbi may be feeling the pressure considering where Spurs sit in the table, Michael Carrick knows the next two weeks will be crucial for his future.
Tottenham, Leeds and Bournemouth await in the Premier League, along with tough trips to Atletico Madrid and Como in the Champions League. If consistency is not found quickly, Carrick could be at serious risk of becoming the first Premier League manager to be sacked this season.
Carrick simply has to get his team selection right this weekend. Senne Lammens is comfortably first choice, even before you consider the injury issues with Karl Darlow and Tom Heaton. The Belgium international has been criticised after the disastrous own goal against Fulham, but he still remains a vast improvement on predecessors Andre Onana and Altay Bayindir.
Diogo Dalot and Luke Shaw are the first choice full-backs, while Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez are the trusted centre-backs. Leny Yoro could muscle his way into that defence, particularly after his stellar performance for France during the international break, but the Maguire-Martinez connection still seems the safest bet.
In midfield, Kobbie Mainoo is guaranteed a starter assuming he is fit after pulling out of England duty, along with captain Bruno Fernandes. Who joins them in the centre is less clear. Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos have struggled to nail down that position, while Mason Mount also feels a risk.
Currently, the opportunity looks to be primed for Carlos Baleba to make his full debut. He has yet to appear for the Reds since his summer move from Brighton. An ankle injury picked up in pre-season has kept him sidelined up to this point, but he did feature in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Lausanne-Sport last week.
Baleba is backed by the recruitment department to be the missing piece of this squad and he certainly has the chance to cement his place this weekend.
In attack, Carrick knows what his best selection is to beat Spurs. Bryan Mbeumo and Marcus Rashford should man both flanks. Rashford and Shaw's link-up play has been good this season while Mbeumo, on his day, is as good as anyone in the Premier League.
Leading the line should be Benjamin Sesko, but here lies the problem. Sesko is an injury doubt having withdrawn from the Slovenia squad during the international break. He is not the only doubt either. Mainoo and Rashford both withdrew from England duty and Baleba, albeit he is back in full training, is not guaranteed to be fit enough to start.
Carrick knows exactly what his strongest side looks like and it is clear who he should pick against Spurs. But whether the seemingly endless list of injury concerns allows him to select it, remains to be seen.