Mauricio Pochettino will take charge of Manchester United for the first time against Liverpool next weekend, and the selection picture is already complicated by injuries and a possible reshuffle in attack. Senne Lammens is set to start in goal, while Marcus Rashford could be asked to fill a right-sided role if he is fit enough to return.
Injuries are forcing early calls
Carlos Baleba picked up a hamstring injury against Roma, Benjamin Sesko is ruled out until January with a shin injury, and Patrick Dorgu also picked up another knock on international duty. Luke Shaw and Marcus Rashford have both been sidelined of late with knocks, although Carrick said they would be assessed over the international break.
That leaves Pochettino with very little room to settle on a straightforward XI. Bryan Mbeumo has to start up front with no Sesko, and the right side becomes one of the more interesting decisions if Rashford is available.
The shape of United's attack
United sit 18th in the Premier League with 8 points from 10 matches, and they have only 1 league win. They have also conceded 19 goals, which makes the case for more stability at the back pretty obvious. Liverpool arrive 4th with 18 points, so the debut is not landing in a gentle fixture.
The defensive choices look a bit more settled than the front line. Lisandro Martínez has 8 Premier League appearances this season, Harry Maguire has 10, and Diogo Dalot has 10, while Shaw's 5 appearances show why any return from injury needs to be handled carefully. Sesko's 4 league appearances leave United short of natural centre-forward options, which is why Rashford's role matters so much.
Pochettino arrives in Manchester next week, and his first selection has the feel of an early test rather than a routine team sheet.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
