Carrick provides Baleba injury update before Man Utd's trip to Fulham

Michael Carrick has confirmed that Carlos Baleba is making positive strides towards a potential Manchester United debut at Fulham on Sunday (4:30pm). The midfielder made the move to Old Trafford during the summer window from Brighton and Hove Albion.

United secured a £65million deal, plus £5m in add-ons, having first shown interest in the Cameroon international the previous summer. The club were desperately short in midfield following Casemiro's departure after his contract expired, and Manuel Ugarte's serious injury while on World Cup duty with Uruguay.

United brought in Andrey Santos from Chelsea before Youri Tielemans completed a switch from Aston Villa, with Baleba subsequently arriving after Brighton agreed to accept a reduced fee.

The 22-year-old endured a dip in form last season, yet United's hierarchy are reportedly thrilled with the deal they struck, some 12 months after first registering their interest. Baleba is yet to pull on a United shirt, having sustained an ankle ligament injury during pre-season preparations.

However, Carrick has offered an encouraging fitness update to MUTV, via the club's official website, ahead of this weekend's clash at Craven Cottage.

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He said: "We're looking good. Everyone's up and running Over the last week or so, pretty much everyone has played and [been] fit and we're trying to get Carlos back in.

"Well, I say back in, actually introducing him into the group. So he's done a bit of training this week and, hopefully, we'll get Luke [Shaw] back in and around it this week and look forward to a strong game on the weekend."

Baleba is clearly raring to go as he looks to prove his worth in a United shirt.

Carrick added: "Yeah, he's desperate to get started. He's bouncing around the place.

"It's not always easy, I think, when you come into a new club and you're not right fully in with the group, with the training.

"But he's dealt with that ever so well, I have to say. He's got great personality and he's full of enthusiasm around [the place] and pushing to get back as quickly as possible. So it's great to have him back."

United are crying out for three points this weekend following a torrid run of results. The Reds conceded a stoppage-time equaliser at Everton, before going down in the Manchester derby — despite playing the majority of the match against 10 men — in a defeat that hinged on a wrongly-awarded goal.

Carrick's side then blew a two-goal advantage to suffer a 3-2 home defeat to Brighton on Wednesday night, crashing out of the League Cup at the first hurdle for the second successive season. United now face a Fulham side still searching for their first league victory under new manager Alvaro Arbeloa, the former Real Madrid player and manager.

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