Erik ten Hag says Raphael Varane and Victor Lindelof could be back for Brighton and Hove Albion | OneFootball

Erik ten Hag says both Raphael Varane and Victor Lindelof could be in the Manchester United squad for their final Premier League game of 2023/24 at Brighton and Hove Albion.

The manager was speaking at the pre-match press conference and was asked about players’ fitness.

He said the duo could feature but Luke Shaw is not ready.

“We’re working to bring players back. Licha had a good session now as well, others on the pitch like Rapha, Victor Lindelof, we have to see how far they are on Sunday. Tomorrow we’re off, Saturday we have training.

“Luke is more complicated in this moment, let’s say it’s less of a chance he will make it but still a very small chance. He had a setback, now we have to find out how far it is,” he said on Shaw.

There was more good news, though, in defence as Ten Hag confirmed that Harry Maguire may also be fit for the Cup final next Saturday.

“Harry Maguire has a fair chance that he will be available,” were his exact words.

Ten Hag was then asked about the incident during the warm-up of yesterday’s game when Marcus Rashford had to be dragged away from a dispute with a heckling fan. However, the explanation from the manager made little sense.

“I saw yesterday, I felt the fans, they were all very positive about the mood, spirit and ambience in the stadium,” he said. “That is very good and it shows the strong bond between the team and the fans.”

He was then asked about the upcoming vote on whether to scrap the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) from Premier League football.

“I don’t think there is a way back,” he said. “In principle it makes football more fair. But we have problems. We have to make improvements.”

Attention then turned to last night’s victory over Newcastle United and the tremendous performances of youngsters such as Kobbie Mainoo, Amad and Rasmus Hojlund, each of whom scored a goal.

“Confidence is a great thing,” Ten Hag mused. “This season we almost didn’t get the turning point, now we can make a step through.

“I remember the Arsenal game and in the 87th minute, I thought we won it. That could have given a big lift to the team. We never got this but a game like yesterday will help us, especially the young players. It will give us lots of confidence.”

The second part of the press conference will be covered on The Peoples Person from 10.30pm on Saturday.

Sunday’s match at the Amex kicks off at 4pm.

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