{"id":546662,"date":"2025-11-03T17:32:16","date_gmt":"2025-11-03T17:32:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/546662\/"},"modified":"2025-11-03T17:32:16","modified_gmt":"2025-11-03T17:32:16","slug":"manchester-united-handed-midfield-injury-boost","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/546662\/","title":{"rendered":"Manchester United handed midfield injury boost"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Man Utd midfielder Sekou Kone suffered a head injury in August but is closing in on a return to action.<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0_GettyImages-2229991334.jpg\" alt=\"Sekou Kone is set to be available to play again\" loading=\"eager\"  \/>Sekou Kone is set to be available to play again(Image: 2025 Manchester United FC)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">Manchester United midfielder Sekou Kone is set to be available to play again after the November international break.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">United&#8217;s Under-21s visited Tamworth in the <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk\/all-about\/football-league-cup\" target=\"_self\" aria-label=\"\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">National League Cup<\/a> in mid-August, but the game was abandoned due to a head injury suffered by Kone at the end of the first half.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">Kone was taken to hospital in an ambulance and the game had to be abandoned due to no replacement ambulance being available. He was discharged the following morning and continued his recovery at home. It was later confirmed that Kone had fractured his eye socket during the collision.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">The 19-year-old was described as &#8220;fine&#8221; by an academy source in September, but Kone has not been able to participate in contact training, which has delayed his comeback.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">U21 boss Travis Binnion provided an update on Kone, telling the <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/sport\/football\/articles\/c9937jj781zo\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"BBCLink opens in a new tab.\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">BBC<\/a>: &#8220;After the international break, we think he will be ready to play, which will be good.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">&#8220;He has not been able to do contact, which limits the work we can do, but he is back in full training now and we will get a body of training back into him, with contact.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">The Mali youth international was making his first competitive appearance of the season against Tamworth. Ruben Amorim named Kone in the USA pre-season tour squad, but the youngster didn&#8217;t make an appearance.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">Amorim named Kone in three <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk\/all-about\/premier-league\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Premier LeagueLink opens in a new tab.\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">Premier League<\/a> matchday squads last season &#8211; against Tottenham, Everton and Nottingham Forest &#8211; without giving him his debut for the club.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">United paid around \u00a31million to sign Kone from Malian club Guidars FC in August 2024.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">The Manchester Evening News revealed in April that Kone had settled into life in Manchester <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk\/sport\/football\/football-news\/manchester-united-sekou-kone-academy-31514545\" target=\"_self\" aria-label=\"\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">partly thanks to Tommy Rowe<\/a>, who underwent intensive French lessons to be able to communicate with him.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">Binnion also took French lessons, but credited Rowe for pushing hard to learn a new language.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">&#8212;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">Here at The Manchester Evening News, we are dedicated to bringing you the best <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk\/all-about\/manchester-united-fc\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Manchester UnitedLink opens in a new tab.\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">Manchester United<\/a> coverage and analysis.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">Make sure you don&#8217;t miss out on the latest United news by joining our free WhatsApp group. You can get all the breaking news and best analysis sent straight to your phone by clicking <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/chat.whatsapp.com\/HXAanKPyVq058b0gWHXGte\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"[object Object]Link opens in a new tab.\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\">here<\/strong><\/a> to subscribe.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">You can also subscribe to our free newsletter service. Click <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk\/newsletter-preference-centre\/?view=Solus&amp;mailingListId=b696d536-2cc7-49b1-adf3-1471bfaad63e&amp;utm_source=solusarticle\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"[object Object]Link opens in a new tab.\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\">here<\/strong><\/a> to be sent all the day&#8217;s biggest stories.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"men\">And, finally, if you would rather listen to our expert analysis then make sure to check out our Manchester is Red podcast. Our shows are available on all podcast platforms, including <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/6Rf3zHSgSYkYIA4zaYPz5y\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"[object Object]Link opens in a new tab.\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\">Spotify<\/strong><\/a> and <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/go.skimresources.com\/?id=76202X1528180&amp;xs=1&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fpodcasts.apple.com%2Fgb%2Fpodcast%2Fmanchester-is-red-manchester-united-podcast%2Fid1264579243&amp;sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.manchestereveningnews.co.uk%2Fsport%2Ffootball%2Ffootball-news%2Fhes-ready-man-united-already-31228583\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"[object Object]Link opens in a new tab.\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\">Apple Podcasts<\/strong><\/a>, and you can also watch along on <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@ManUtd_MEN\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"[object Object]Link opens in a new tab.\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\">YouTube<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Man Utd midfielder Sekou Kone suffered a head injury in August but is closing in on a return&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":546663,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4100],"tags":[94,423,27440,79,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-546662","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football","8":"tag-football","9":"tag-manchester-united-fc","10":"tag-sekou-kone","11":"tag-sports","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115486966470972974","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/546662","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=546662"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/546662\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/546663"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=546662"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=546662"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=546662"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}