MANCHESTER UNITED DUO Nemanja Matic and Alexis Sanchez could be set to make a return from injury this week after both were named in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s travelling party for their Champions League clash against Barcelona.
The pair were named among a 22-man squad for the trip to Camp Nou as the Red Devils aim to overturn a first leg 1-0 deficit against Ernesto Valverde’s side and reach the semi-finals for the first time in eight years.
Matteo Darmian is also named after a spell on the sidelines, while Luke Shaw also heads to Spain despite being banned for the tie after picking up a yellow card in defeat last Wednesday.
However, there is no place for Ander Herrera, who remains out with a hamstring problem.
The return of Matic hands a prospective major boost to United if he is able to play, with the Serbia international likely to slot into midfield as Solskjaer looks to mastermind his second remarkable European turnaround of the season.
The Norwegian led his side to the quarter-finals with a shock 3-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain last month, overturning the 2-0 reverse sustained at Old Trafford, with Marcus Rashford snatching a berth in the last eight with his late penalty.
Much has already been made of Solskjaer’s return to Camp Nou, where he famously helped United to an injury-time comeback win over Bayern Munich in the 1999 Champions League final after coming off the bench.
Sanchez has struggled for game time this season but could also be in line for an appearance against his former club if fit as the Red Devils looks to bounce back from a wobbly run of form in recent weeks.
Since Solskjaer took the top job at Old Trafford on a permanent basis, United have only won two of their four games, with Saturday’s victory over West Ham requiring two spot-kicks from Paul Pogba to seal the three points in a laboured performance.
Manchester United squad: David de Gea, Sergio Romero, Lee Grant; Diogo Dalot, Matteo Darmian, Ashley Young, Phil Jones, Victor Lindelof, Marcos Rojo, Chris Smalling, Luke Shaw; Fred, Nemanja Matic, Scott McTominay, Andreas Pereira, Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata; Anthony Martial, Alexis Sanchez, Romelu Lukaku, Marcus Rashford.
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