Man Utd Boss Offers Update On Rooney, Schweinsteiger, Shaw & More Ahead Of Everton

Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal has offered a team news and injury update ahead of Manchester United’s Premier League clash with Everton at Old Trafford on Sunday.

The Dutchman has been speaking to the media at his pre-match press conference this afternoon and told ManUtd.com that Wayne Rooney is progressing well in his recovery from a knee injury that’s kept him out since the defeat at Sunderland in mid-February.

The United skipper is set to step-up his recovery in training over the coming week but van Gaal has indicated that the striker is expected to turn-out for the under-21 side in order to build his match fitness before he’ll be considered for first team duty.

Ander Herrera is also close to making his comeback from a groin injury that’s hampered him in recent weeks while Ashley Young is also on the verge of making his first team comeback after playing for the under-21’s last week having recovered from his own groin problem.

In a further boost, van Gaal revealed that Luke Shaw is due to step-up his rehabilitation by starting work with the physio’s on the training pitch on Monday as he looks to regain fitness following seven months on the sidelines with a broken leg.

However, it wasn’t all positive news as van Gaal confirmed that Bastian Schweinsteiger has once again been sidelined after suffering a knee injury while away on international duty with Germany last month.

The midfielder was ruled out of the World Champions friendlies with England and Italy and with just eight matches remaining in the Premier League campaign, there’s a chance Schweinsteiger may have played his last match this season – although van Gaal insists they’ll have to see how he progressing during his rehabilitation.

The Dutchman told the clubs website:

“Wayne is doing great. He has more or less the same injury as Basti [Schweinsteiger] has now. He’s doing great. Today he has trained on a lower level with a little bit of skill training, so with the ball. It’s going very good with him.”

“Monday, he [Shaw] is back on the training pitch for the first time but that’s a start with the physio, not a start with the trainer coach. Wayne is already with the trainer coach.”

Ander Herrera missed United’s last two matches against Liverpool in the Europa League and the Manchester derby at the Etihad Stadium with a groin injury, though van Gaal has admitted he is edging closer to a return alongside Ashley Young.

“They [Herrera & Young] are coming back. Young and Adnan [Januzaj] played for the reserves last Friday in the international break, in a game between each other. So a lot of players are coming back.”

“Schweinsteiger was injured already before the matches,” van Gaal said to ManUtd.com

“I think on the second day of training. That’s a big blow for us and also for the national team.

“You can never say anything about that [missing the rest of the season] because he’s started his rehabilitation. You have to wait and see.”

Man Utd head in to the weekend action sitting just one point adrift of fourth-placed Manchester City so they’ll be looking to keep the pressure on their rivals by collecting all three points against Everton on Sunday.