Maguire the only senior centre-back as eight miss United training before Como
Marcus Rashford and Lisandro Martínez were among eight players absent from training before United's Champions League trip to Como, with Leny Yoro suspended. Carrick may have to patch up his defence, possibly with academy players, as his winless side face opponents level on three points.
Of United’s senior centre-backs, only Maguire trained at Carrington on Tuesday. Martínez started at Leeds but was taken off at half-time. Leny Yoro is suspended for the trip to Italy.
Rashford sat on the bench at Elland Road on Sunday without getting on the pitch. Alongside him and Martínez, the absentees were Ayden Heaven, Luke Shaw, Kobbie Mainoo, Benjamin Sesko, Patrick Dorgu and Manuel Ugarte.
Several of those absences are not new. Shaw and Mainoo have both missed United’s last two matches. Heaven was ill for the Leeds game. Sesko, Dorgu and Ugarte are all injured.
Academy defenders could fill gaps at the back
Yoro’s ban stems from the defeat in Madrid on 13 October. He was sent off in the 74th minute as United lost 2-0 to Atlético. Pablo Barrios scored in the first minute. Ademola Lookman added the second in the 79th.
With Martínez also missing, Carrick may have to field a makeshift back line. Academy defenders Jaydan Kamason and Dan Armer trained with the first team and could be involved. For a side already short of options, that leaves little room for further setbacks in Italy.
Winless United meet a Como side level on points
The weekend brought no relief. Bryan Mbeumo put United ahead in the 35th minute at Elland Road. Dominic Calvert-Lewin equalised in the 51st. Mbeumo has now scored in two weekends in a row. Even so, three Premier League points slipped away.
Seven points from the first seven Premier League games of the season is United’s return after the trip to Leeds.
Como offer no easy reprieve. The Champions League newcomers beat RB Leipzig 4-1 on Matchday 1. That was the same night United beat Sabah 4-0 at Old Trafford. Both sides now sit on three points in the league phase.
The hosts have their own problems. Como are without Assane Diao because of a thigh injury. Trevoh Chalobah, with a muscle problem, and Moise Kean, with a shin injury, are doubts, according to UEFA’s team news preview.
The European schedule offers no breather later in the phase either. United host RB Leipzig on 8 December 2026 and finish away at Villarreal on 27 January 2027.
Closer to home, the next test comes straight after Como. United return to Old Trafford for a Premier League game against Bournemouth.
Trafford Training Centre: North West Air Ambulance, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
