Manchester United will not play a game of football for 23 days following their recent 2-2 draw against Bournemouth, but amid other poor results from the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool last weekend, they remain third in the table.

With the Reds in sixth when Michael Carrick initially took over, their form has improved drastically so far in 2026, with the temporary United boss being touted as a possible full-time manager for the Reds next season.

But it's not just the squad as a whole that's improved. The likes of Casemiro, Kobbie Mainoo, and Matheus Cunha have come on leaps and bounds since the start of the year.

United have also suffered from a few injury problems to key players, but Carrick will be hoping several players will be able to return to duty once they face Leeds United at Old Trafford in mid-April.

Lisandro Martínez has missed United's last five fixtures after suffering a calf injury in training following the 1-1 draw against West Ham last month. The centre-back had been crucial in United's winning run, although Leny Yoro has stepped up to cover well.

There have always been misgivings about Martínez's injury record, with many feeling that while he is a brilliant defender and one of the best in the world with the ball at his feet, his consistent absences harm the side's rhythm.

However, ahead of the draw against Bournemouth, Carrick confirmed that while the tie with the Cherries was too soon for the Argentina international, he is expected to be back in contention to face Leeds.

Possible return date: Monday, 13 April – Leeds United (H).

While Martínez will return soon, there is considerable concern about the fitness of centre-back Matthijs de Ligt. The Dutchman started all of United's first 13 Premier League games, but has not played since the end of November due to a back problem.

Speaking last week, Carrick admitted it's "difficult to say" if the 26-year-old will play again this season, urging that the club are being "patient" and are "working through" his back problems at a slow pace.

However, the United boss also offered hope by stating that De Ligt is "improving," but it's just not as quickly as first hoped, leaving no indiciation of a possible return date.

Possible return date: N/A.

Patrick Chinazaekpere Dorgu was brilliant in Carrick's first two games in charge, against Manchester City and Arsenal, but suffered a significant hamstring injury against Arsenal and has been undergoing rehabilitation ever since.

Initially, the prognosis given was that Dorgu would be out of action for around 10 weeks, with mid-April given as a reasonable estimate for a return date.

While Carrick did not offer much of an update, other than that Dorgu was behind Martínez in his recovery timeline, there is plenty of scope to suggest that Dorgu may be back in action against either Leeds or Chelsea in the coming weeks.

Possible return date: Monday, 13 April – Leeds United (H).

Harry Maguire has started every one of Carrick's games since the middle of January and has been a stalwart in defence, making almost no mistakes. So, it came as a slight surprise to see the player sent off against Bournemouth.

It was a soft penalty but a clear denial of a goalscoring opportunity, meaning United will not look to appeal the one-match ban that comes with it.

Maguire will therefore miss the game against Leeds, but unless he suffers an injury with England or in United training across the next few weeks, he will be available to face Chelsea.

Possible return date: Saturday, 18 April – Chelsea (A).

Noussair Mazraoui has not played much of a role under Carrick so far, having only started once under the Englishman.

Due to AFCON, he was not part of the initial squad that defeated Man City, Arsenal, and others, leading Diogo Dalot to take charge at right-back.

Mazraoui then missed the Bournemouth game last week, although Carrick confirmed that this was down to illness, rather than any signifiacnt injury.

Possible return date: Monday, 13 April – Leeds United (H).

On Monday afternoon, it was announced that Benjamin Šeško would be withdrawing from international duty with Slovenia.

The club confirmed that Šeško had been playing with a knock he had been managing for the last few weeks and had withdrawn from international duty in order to recover.

He is not expected to miss any games for United.

Alongside Šeško, Bryan Mbeumo has also withdrawn from his international commitments, and the club confirmed that the winger was leaving the Cameroon camp as a precautionary measure.

Mbeumo is also not expected to miss any action for the Reds and should be fit and ready to face Leeds next month.