Erik ten Hag has revealed Manchester United defender Leny Yoro’s recovery from injury is going well and he is looking forward to reintegrating the French teenager into his first-team squad.
The Red Devils beat Real Madrid to sign the 18-year-old from Lille during the summer transfer window, agreeing a five-year contract at Old Trafford. However, Yoro picked up a metatarsal injury during a pre-season clash with Arsenal in the United States and has not made his official debut as a result.
Manager Ten Hag has settled on a centre-back partnership of Lisandro Martinez and Matthijs de Ligt in the early stages of the 2024/25 campaign, with Harry Maguire getting game time in the Europa League and Carabao Cup.
Yoro is not expected to be available until November at the earliest but Ten Hag has confirmed he is progressing well with his rehab.
He said: “Yes, he is doing very well. It is very pleasing that his rehab is going in the right direction and I expect him soon, but what I mean by soon, is that he is now in the right planning process.
“He is in the right spot and he will return as soon as possible into the squad and then the team training.”
Yoro impressed in his first summer friendly appearance for United, playing the first 45 minutes of the 2-0 win over Rangers at Murrayfield in July. However, he didn’t make it to half-time in the next match against Arsenal and later required foot surgery.
Injuries played a major part in United’s disappointing 2023/24 Premier League campaign, though Ten Hag has most of first-team squad available for Sunday’s fixture against Tottenham Hotspur. Left-backs Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia are still out, while Victor Lindelof is also unavailable. He has a clean slate elsewhere though as he bids to move his team into the top ten of the table.