27 July 2023 , 04:30
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Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has invited teenage forward Joe Hugill back into his senior preseason squad and decided to keep centre-back Jonny Evans on for the rest of the club's United States tour.
Hugill, 19, gives the Red Devils added depth at striker as Anthony Martial continues to recover from injury and their prolonged transfer market search for a new centre-forward drags on. He was not in the squad for Wednesday night's match against Real Madrid after featuring with United's youngsters in a defeat to Wrexham on Tuesday night.
But whilst the rest of that young squad flew home, he could now appear in some capacity against Borussia Dortmund on July 31. At the very least, it is an opportunity for a player yet to make his Premier League debut to train alongside first-team players.
Evans, meanwhile, was brought in earlier this summer to provide leadership for younger teammates, and his efforts have impressed management enough for the club to extend his spell at least through the end of the month. The defender previously played at Manchester United from 2006-2015 after coming up in their youth academy, and he has since made stops with West Brom and Leicester City.
"I think he [Evans] helped us, as you said, [with] younger players, but also for numbers here," Ten Hag said. "Not all the internationals were in and we had to manage the load from the players so that was really useful."
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Ten Hag added: "Jonny wants to stay fit, he still wants a career. Last week I think he played a very good game against Lyon and you could see how he was mentoring the younger players and I think he was pushing the younger players to a higher level and that can be really helpful."
Manchester United have yet to announce whether Evans will remain in the squad when they return home in August for games against Lens at Old Trafford and Athletic Club in Ireland. It has been said that the 35-year-old defender still wants to continue his professional playing career rather than turn to coaching.
Jonny Evans flew into Houston to watch Manchester United's match against Real Madrid on Wednesday night local time. (Manchester United via Getty Images)Hugill will likely return to the youth ranks once the Red Devils complete their run through America, although he'll likely be around the fringes of the first-team fold at various stages. Ten Hag said earlier this week that Martial is back in training, though he didn't make the bench for the Real Madrid friendly.
"He is a brilliant football player, he will score goals," Ten Hag said of Martial. "We hope he will be fit and stay fit. It is easier when you have a striker in your team."
The head coach added that Manchester United are growing confident of landing a big-money striker before the end of the window. "Progress yes," Ten Hag said of the search. "You know how it works, when we have him, we will tell you directly."
Atalanta star Rasmus Hojlund reportedly agreed to join the club this week and has turned down a late approach from Paris Saint-Germain – despite their offer of a greater financial package - and a fee between Manchester United and the Italian club appears to be the last obstacle before a transfer that could cost somewhere between £60million and £80m.