Manchester United face the possibility of travelling to Spain without both Kobbie Mainoo and Luke Shaw, with late fitness calls set to be made on the duo ahead of the Champions League meeting with Atletico Madrid.
Late decisions on injury doubts
Michael Carrick's squad flies to the Spanish capital on Monday afternoon, having trained at their Carrington base in the morning as usual before a European fixture. Both Mainoo and Shaw were absent from that session.
According to the Daily Mail, a late decision will be made over whether either player makes the trip for Tuesday's game. Should Mainoo miss out, summer signing Carlos Baleba could make his first start after appearing from the bench on Saturday.
Mainoo recently withdrew from England duty due to a combination of injury and workload management. With the season still early, United are keen not to take risks with the midfielder.
Shaw cover concerns and Atletico challenge
The lack of back-up behind Shaw has already been a talking point this season. United tried and failed to sign Lewis Hall in the summer, leaving them to find solutions when the England international is unavailable.
Matthijs de Ligt, who has not featured for United since November 2025, trained but is not expected to play against Atletico. United began their Champions League campaign with a four-goal win over Sabah at Old Trafford, one of only two victories in their opening eight games, leaving Carrick under serious pressure.
They now face Diego Simeone's side, who sit second in La Liga and reached the Champions League semi-finals last season. That is the first of two difficult away games this week, with a trip to Leeds to follow at the weekend.
Elland Road was the final ground Ruben Amorim visited last season before his dismissal. Leeds, who beat Carrick's side at Old Trafford earlier this year, lost for the first time this campaign when they went down at Arsenal on Saturday.
Neville challenged the United squad to step up given the challenges ahead. "The rest of them are going to have to get a grip because they are going to Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid and Elland Road," he said. "If you're not quite right there from a mental and physical perspective, you're going to get found out."
