Manchester United are set to welcome back a number of players against Newport County in Sunday’s FA Cup fourth round clash.
Casemiro was included in the squad that drew 2-2 with Tottenham nine days ago but failed to get on the pitch following his comeback from a hamstring injury. The Brazilian has not played since November 1 but could get his first minutes of 2024 in Wales.
Meanwhile, Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw have returned to full training as they step up their recovery from setbacks. Maguire has been out since the defeat to Bayern Munich last month with a groin issue.
Shaw has not featured since Christmas after being ruled out of the Boxing Day 3-2 comeback win over Aston Villa. Both could make a return against Newport, while two United youngsters could build on their debuts with one striker likely to miss out.
Youngsters spotted
Omari Forson was handed his debut in the last round of the cup, coming on late against Wigan Athletic. The academy product featured for Erik ten Hag in pre-season and his senior bow against Wigan made him the 249th youth graduate. He will be hoping for a second outing.
Willy Kambwala was the 248th to make his debut having started against West Ham in December and has made two further appearances since. With Victor Lindelof out and Maguire still not at top speed, the 19-year-old may be spying some minutes against League Two opposition.
The battle for right wing
Reports this week have suggested that Antony is on limited time at United having not found the net since April. He is yet to produce a goal contribution this season and is fighting for minutes as a result.
United have decided to keep Amad in-house this month despite loan interest, which is ominous for Antony. Both will be eager to start against Newport with the pair dying to get on the scoresheet.
Martial not seen
Anthony Martial was not photographed with the main squad in Tuesday’s training session. The striker has not played since December 9 after enduring a bout of sickness over recent weeks.
Martial is training alone to build his levels back up to full speed. He is not injured and the decision is nothing to do with disciplinary issues but purely for fitness purposes. However, his absence from full training this week means selection against Newport is fairly unlikely.