Como v Man United LIVE: Carrick battles injury crisis and winless run in Champions League

Manchester United seek to end a six-game winless run as they travel to face Como in the Champions League.

But Michael Carrick is battling an injury crisis in defence as he bids to turn the club’s fortunes around, with Luke Shaw, Lisandro Martinez and Patrick Dorgu all out, Ayden Heaven unavailable due to illness and Leny Yoro suspended following his sending off in the 2-0 defeat at Atletico Madrid last week.

Carrick said he was hoping for a “fresh start” following the 1-1 draw against Leeds on Sunday but United could face a tough evening against the Italian side, who are led by Cesc Fabregas and demolished RB Leipzig 4-1 on their Champions League debut at the Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium last month.

Follow live updates from Como v Man Utd with our live blog below:

Como v Man Utd LIVE: Latest Champions League updates

Como host depleted Manchester United in Champions League | Kick-off 5:45pm on TNT Sports and HBO Max
Michael Carrick's side are without a win in six games in all competitions
United without up to eight first-team players as injury and illness hit defence
Cesc Fabregas's Como side are making their Champions League debut this season
Como XI: Butez; Yan Couto, Ramon, Kempf, Valle; Perrone, Milla; Da Cunha, Paz, Baturina; Douvikas
Man United XI: Lammens; Mazraoui, De Ligt, Maguire, Dalot; Santos, Tielemans, Mount; Fernandes, Cunha, Mbeumo

De Ligt's long wait

17:35 , Alan Smith

Matthijs de Ligt returns from injury to start for Manchester United in Como, making his first appearance since 30 November 2025 against Crystal Palace.#COMMUN pic.twitter.com/gOb0vX7yVF
— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) October 21, 2026

Fabregas: We'll do our best

17:28 , Alan Smith

Fabregas has been speaking to the UK broadcaster too. “It's a very special night for the city, for the club, for everyone around it. We've grown a lot in the past few years and I think the players deserve to be living life like this. Let’s enjoy it, it's an honour ... we’ll do our best.”

De Ligt's return 'fantastic' for United

17:21 , Alan Smith

Michael Carrick, speaking to TNT Sports, is happy to see the defender back for a first appearance since last November.

“It's fantastic to have Matthijs back. He's been working so hard for such a long period of time. He's been training for a good number of weeks, it's good to have him back on the pitch.”

Como's kids may well be alright

17:20 , Alan Smith

Como have only six outfield players on their bench tonight because Fabregas said there aren’t any other players available, citing a lack of academy depth as one reason in his press conference.

Maybe it was his way of motivating the youngsters because they defeated United 2-1 in their Youth League match earlier today.

Como's journey

17:12 , Alan Smith

It wasn't so long ago that Como were in Serie D; tonight they host Manchester United in the Champions League.

It's been a meteoric rise. pic.twitter.com/e6twZd00Qw
— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) October 21, 2026

Goals galore?

17:06 , Alan Smith

Hopes of another belter are high...

4.2 - There's been 187 goals scored in 45 games in the UEFA Champions League this season.

At 4.2 goals per game, it's the most in a European Cup campaign since 1959-60 (also 4.2 per game).

Entertainment. pic.twitter.com/sHl88U2c0r
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) October 20, 2026

Fabregas perturbed by Carrick questions

17:00 , Alan Smith

Of course Fabregas was also asked for his take on Carrick’s future and of course he delivered a dead bat to it. “As you can understand I won’t answer that question because I think that’s not a very nice question,” he said during Como’s MD-1 chatter. “I don’t think that shows enough respect to a great footballer and manager like Michael Carrick at the helm of a wonderful Manchester United side.”

Team news

16:56 , Chris Wilson

Here are the latest thoughts on the United team news from Chris Wilson, who is in place at the Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium...

So, Michael Carrick has made four changes to the side that drew to Leeds at the weekend, with a few of them enforced by injury and suspension.
In defence, the suspended Leny Yoro makes way for Noussair Mazraoui, while the injured Lisandro Martinez is replaced by Matthijs de Ligt, who makes his first start in 11 months.
Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans continue in midfield, while Mason Mount and Matheus Cunha replace Amad and Carlos Baleba.

Carrick: No reassurances required

16:54 , Alan Smith

While speculation continues around the United head coach, he insisted during his pre-match press conference on Tuesday night that there is no sense of insecurity for him personally.

He said: “I don’t need any reassurance. It’s pretty clear. I know the role, I know my responsibilities. I don’t need anyone else to tell me when it’s going well or when it needs to be better. There’s not much I can really elaborate on that. I know we’ve got to win football games for everything to flow and everything to fit into place.”

Michael Carrick will have a few selection headaches for Wednesday’s game (Martin Rickett/PA) (PA Wire)

Hopes that lightning stays away

16:49 , Chris Wilson

Here are the latest thoughts from Chris Wilson, who is in place at the Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium...

The rain has been stop-start throughout the day so far but it started pouring a little while ago, only to once again subside.
It hasn't been particularly heavy throughout the day, so talk of the game being postponed due to rain seems far-fetched.
However, some weather forecasts had thunder and lightning around kick-off and during the game, and as we saw during the World Cup, that can cause chaos.

Good omen for United

16:48 , Alan Smith

United have not been beaten in any of their past six visits to Italian sides in the Champions League, according to Uefa. The last loss there was a 3-0 defeat to Milan in the second leg of the 2007 semi-finals.

Weather watch

16:42 , Alan Smith

It looks like there are plenty of storm clouds gathering around the lake, which Carrick will hope is not a touch ominous.

The Sinigaglia is ready 🏟️ pic.twitter.com/A7JJ0WXPJx
— Como1907 (@Como_1907) October 21, 2026

Confirmed Como team

16:38 , Alan Smith

Cesc Fabregas is down to the bare bones owing to a lack of home-grown depth in his squad but this is how the hosts line up.

Butez; Yan Couto, Ramon, Kempf, Valle; Perrone, Milla; Da Cunha, Paz, Baturina; Douvikas

Confirmed Man Utd team

16:35 , Alan Smith

Lining up for United this evening...

✨ #UCL pic.twitter.com/nyKC4GpWgH
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 21, 2026

Como vs Man United

15:42 , Luke Baker

Good afternoon and welcome to The Independent’s coverage of Man United’s trip to Como in the Champions League.

United, and boss Michael Carrick, could desperately do with a victory to end their six-game winless run in all competitions and quieten some of the noise at Old Trafford.

Stick with us for full live coverage