Carrick Uncertain On De Ligt Return This Season

Michael Carrick has refused to rule out the possibility that Matthijs de Ligt may miss the remainder of the season as the Netherlands defender continues to be troubled by a back injury.

De Ligt hasn’t featured for Man United since the 2-1 win over Crystal Palace on November 30.

Club bosses initially thought the injury was a relatively minor issue.

But the 26-year-old has been sidelined for close to four months and with only eight games left of the current campaign, it has raised the prospect that it may be next season before he’s able to return.

“It’s difficult to say, just because it’s taken that much time,” Carrick said.

“I can’t give you any more on it really.

“It’s one of those things with backs that sometimes you think it’s all right and then all of a sudden it’s not quite right.

“We’re just kind of being patient and working through it. We’ll just have to see.

“We’ll obviously give him time and try to get him back as quick as we can, but it’s really difficult to say.

“I’m not trying to hide anything, literally at the moment we don’t know so we’ll have to wait and see.”

De Ligt was ever-present in the Premier League before his injury, starting every one of United’s 13 league games at the start of the season under former boss Ruben Amorim.

He’s yet to return to training and is already facing a race against the clock to prove his fitness before this summer’s World Cup.

“It’s like any injury. It’s trying to get the balance right,” Carrick said.

“Some are a little bit more straightforward than others.

“It kind of is what it is really. He’s improving, it’s not improving as quickly as we all hope, but we’ll see how it goes.”

De Ligt’s lengthy absence has raised the possibility that he may require surgery, although Carrick is remaining tight-lipped about the options being considered.