The preseason is winding down, and it won’t be long until the games actually count for real. Manchester United will face Everton at Old Trafford on Saturday in what will be their final preseason warm-up before starting the Premier League season against Leeds United on Aug. 14.
As is usual this time of year, there are a lot of questions to be sorted out with the roster. Let’s run through some of the most pressing questions and issues.
Let’s start with right back Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who will travel to United’s preseason camp in St. Andrews, Scotland, according to ESPN, he’s picked up an injury that makes him a doubt for the season. ESPN FC writes that Wan-Bissaka “has been given an individual training programme as a precaution.”
So I guess we’ll just have to see how it all plays out.
One person who won’t be there is goalkeeper Dean Henderson, who is still recovering from long term fatigue, after testing positive for COVID-19. He had returned to training after having tested negative, but he’s sidelined now. More on his and the goalkeeping situation here.
Henderson’s rival for the No. 1 position, David De Gea has returned to training finally, having finished his extended holiday after international duty with Spain at Euro 2020. Also back in training was Phil Jones, and I’m sure you’re like what? Huh? He’s still on the team?
Why? But yeah Jones hasn’t played in a game that meant anything for more than a year and a half 18 months due to a knee injury.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune.