Manchester United are still being bothered by a number of injury problems as Michael Carrick fights to save his job.

The embattled manager has been handed a surprise stay of execution at Old Trafford despite an abysmal start to his first full season in charge continuing with dreadful heavy defeats by Como and Bournemouth.

Carrick is expected to be given the chance to turn things around at United and remains at the helm for another difficult-looking game away at Chelsea in Saturday’s lunchtime Premier League kick-off.

Co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe will be in attendance at Stamford Bridge, where Man Utd won back in April for the first time in six years thanks to Matheus Cunha’s late first-half goal.

Carrick will be desperate to have a stronger squad to choose from in another crucial game that could well define his future. With that in mind, here is all the latest Manchester United injury news and return dates.

A new update has finally been provided on Benjamin Sesko’s lingering shin injury. The Slovenian’s 2025/26 campaign was cut short by the same issue, with the striker recovering to feature in the first games of this season.

Sesko was involved in varying capacities until being absent for the trip to Fulham, and since the international break the towering forward has been sidelined once more.

Standard Sport now understands that Sesko will be out until at least January, leaving the Red Devils short up top for two more months.

“Yeah, not so positive unfortunately with Ben, he's going to be out for a period of time,” Carrick said before the trip to Chelsea. “We're not exactly sure yet how long, but it's going to be a significant amount of time, unfortunately.

“So I feel for Ben, he had the issue at the end of last season that we looked after and tried to give him as much time to recover and then unfortunately he's had the issue coming into this season.

“So, we've got to do what's best for Ben and he's going to have to have some time on the sidelines, unfortunately.

“It's not great for us, it's certainly not great for Ben, but it is part of the game and we've just got to try and make the best of it and get him back as quick as we can.”

Potential return date: January

There may be a slight positive over Bruno Fernandes and Carrick’s public falling out. After the two exchanged pointed messages in the press following the heavy defeat by Como last week, Carrick left out his captain for the 3-0 loss at home to Bournemouth.

Fernandes remained on the bench, briefly warming up but not coming on as United struggled to lay a glove on the Cherries. Manager and skipper held talks to clear the air this week, indicating that Fernandes will return for Saturday’s trip to Chelsea.

Carrick labelled dropping Fernandes as a "pure football" decision at the time, but he may also have inadvertently rested his star, who has struggled with an unspecified injury issue for weeks now that was highlighted while he was away with Portugal.

On Monday when the United squad were given the day off, Fernandes and other sidelined players were at Carrington for treatment, suggesting he is still carrying a knock.

However, as he has previously played through the injury, it seems unlikely that Fernandes will need to miss any games.

Potential return date: Saturday October 31, vs Chelsea (A)

Marcus Rashford (hip) is another player that has been in contention despite carrying an injury.

Rashford was an unused substitute during the first game back from the international break - United’s 1-1 draw with rivals Leeds. However, he was then omitted from the travelling squad for the Como game, and also missed Sunday’s defeat by Bournemouth.

Speaking ahead of the Como loss, Carrick said: “Marcus is still feeling a hip issue that we're trying to overcome.”

No specific details have been provided about a potential return date, though Rashford has been back in the gym this week and could be pushing for involvement against Chelsea.

Potential return date: Saturday October 31, vs Chelsea (A)

Carrick has at least provided a more concrete timeline for Kobbie Mainoo, who has been sidelined since the draw with Tottenham.

Before the Como loss, Carrick implied that Mainoo would be back in “10 days or so”.

He has since returned to training at Carrington and looks set to be involved against Chelsea.

“Yeah, it's great to have Kobbie back,” Carrick said on Thursday. “He's a fantastic footballer, we know that.

“He hasn't trained an awful lot, he's trained a little bit, so we'll see how he is going into the weekend, but nevertheless, it's a good step for us in the right direction.”

Potential return date: Saturday October 31, vs Chelsea (A)

Carrick previously used Mainoo as a reference point when discussing Luke Shaw’s absence.

Beyond the issue being described as a knock, not much is known about Shaw’s latest injury, which has caused chaos in defence as Carrick shuffles players across the backline.

Per Carrick, Shaw was expected to be sidelined for longer than Mainoo - but how much longer is not clear.

Potential return date: November

Patrick Dorgu picked up a hamstring issue while playing for Denmark during the last international break, with a return not expected until November at the earliest.

The last timeframe provided by Carrick was before the Spurs game at the start of October. Speaking about Dorgu, the manager said: “It looks like he'll be out for a number of weeks.”

Potential return date: Late November

Manuel Ugarte is United’s longest-term injury absentee, with the Red Devils set to be missing the midfielder until 2027.

He was stretchered off with knee ligament damage during Uruguay’s 1-0 defeat by Spain at the World Cup in June.

He underwent surgery and is still a long way away from a return to the pitch.

Potential return date: Spring/summer 2027