Manchester United head coach Erik ten Hag 'hopes' that Anthony Martial will be able to return to action before the 2022-23 campaign is halted for the World Cup.
The Red Devils will play another five matches before the break for the international competition, starting with Sunday's Premier League clash with West Ham United.
The 20-time English champions will then take on Real Sociedad in the Europa League, before back-to-back games against Aston Villa in the Premier League and EFL Cup respectively.
Man United's final game before the campaign is halted will be against Fulham on November 13, and they will then not be back in action until December 27 against Nottingham Forest.
Martial has only played four times for the Red Devils this season due to a number of injury problems, with his latest issue, which is related to his back, keeping him out since October 9.
The France international is also set to miss out against West Ham this weekend, but Ten Hag remains 'hopeful' that the forward will be available before the World Cup.
Martial is now back on the grass at the club's Carrington training complex but is yet to return to full first-team sessions alongside his teammates.
"I hope [so]. But he is making progress. He is outside and he is working there. So, he is on the pitch, and we are waiting for his step back into team training," Ten Hag told reporters.
"He had a setback against Everton. It was really frustrating for us and also for him. We have seen that he played good in pre-season. He has less minutes [than many other players], but he has scored already three goals.
"At Everton, he had also an important role with the first goal, his assist for Antony, so it would be really good to have him back because he can make a difference. He can score goals but also when linking up he's really important, and the pressing from him is really good."
Martial returned to Man United over the summer after an unsuccessful loan spell at Sevilla in the second half of the 2022-23 campaign.
The Frenchman had been tipped to leave in the recent transfer window but managed to convince Ten Hag of his qualities during the club's preparations for the new season.
Martial missed the start of the campaign with a hamstring problem before spending time out with an Achilles issue, but he has impressed during his limited action this term, scoring three times and providing two assists in four appearances.
The former Monaco youngster has now found the back of the net on 82 occasions in 273 appearances for the Red Devils in all competitions since arriving in 2015, in addition to providing 52 assists. body check tags ::
