Manchester United return to action on Monday with renewed optimism after interim manager Michael Carrick welcomed Mason Mount back to fitness and saw Lisandro Martinez return to training ahead of their Premier ​League clash with Leeds United.

Carrick’s men have not played for more than three weeks since ‌a 2-2 draw at Bournemouth, but resume their campaign sitting third in the table and looking to strengthen their grip on a Champions League place, buoyed up by improving squad availability as the season heads into a crucial phase.

Mount has played sparingly ​due to injury, and was on the pitch for just a minute of the Bournemouth draw,

“It’s ​great to have Mason back, to miss him so quickly after we came in ⁠and came together,” Carrick told reporters on Saturday.

“He’s obviously had nearly two or three weeks of building up ​and finding his rhythm, finding his sharpness. I think his versatility, is a big strength of his. He ​can play through the middle, he can play midfield, he can play wide and he can do so many different roles.

“We’ve just got to give him the time to get fit again and be patient with that but he’s certainly in a ​good place right now.”

Carrick was undecided on the status of Martinez, who has not played since suffering a ​calf injury in early February.

“It’s just that call that we make,” he said. “We wouldn’t be pushed into anything.

“He’s back training, ‌which is ⁠great, and back on the grass. But we’ve certainly got to make the right decision and make sure he’s ready.”

United are third on 55 points, one point ahead of fourth-placed Aston Villa, but six ahead of fifth-placed Liverpool.

Carrick has overseen a spectacular run since taking charge in January, guiding United to 23 points from a ​possible 30 and restoring ​calm after a turbulent first ⁠half of the season.

With just weeks remaining and the race for the five Champions League places tightening, United know there is little room for complacency.

Monday’s match also ​reignites one of English football’s fiercest rivalries, with Carrick keen for his players ​to embrace the ⁠occasion.

“It’s gone on for an awful long time,” Carrick said. “I think that’s what rivalries are there for, for a really good reason, I think, to be part of, and the intensity and the emotion and the passion that ⁠goes into ​it.

“Obviously, it’s got to keep within the margins but I think ​that’s part of the game we love, going up against other teams… and battling it out on the pitch. So I think ​it’s something that we’ve got to embrace.”

Leeds are 15th in the table.

-Reuters

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Holders Paris St ​Germain were a cut above Liverpool as goals by Desire Doue and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia spurred them to ‌an easy 2-0 home win in their Champions League quarter-final first leg on Wednesday.

Doue and Kvaratskhelia struck either side of halftime to give Luis Enrique’s side a solid advantage ahead of next week’s return at Anfield, where PSG booked their place in the last ​eight last season

Doue opened the scoring with a deflected effort before Kvaratskhelia doubled the lead with a superb ​solo run and finish, but PSG wasted a handful of chances that would have further ⁠strengthened their push for the semi-finals.

Liverpool, thrashed 4-0 by Manchester City in the FA Cup quarter-finals at the weekend, ​set up cautiously with three centre backs and Mohamed Salah on the bench, but struggled to contain a PSG side ​that mixed patient possession with bursts of attacking intensity.

Arne Slot opted for a back three with wings but the defence held for only 11 minutes at the Parc des Princes.

Doue picked up the ball on the left side of the box and his curled shot ​towards the opposite top corner took a slight deflection off Ryan Gravenberch and went out of Giorgi Mamardashvili’s reach.

Liverpool ​were hanging on for dear life, picking up two yellow cards in three minutes, and barely threatened.

ZERO SHOTS ON TARGET FOR LIVERPOOL

As ‌the ⁠visitors’ defence scrambled a clearance, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia fired a half-volley that forced Mamardashvili to fully stretch. The keeper then denied Doue from point-blank range, preserving Liverpool’s deficit to a minimum.

Next, Ousmane Dembele missed a golden opportunity to double the advantage when he shot straight at the keeper at the end of a sharp transition.

Liverpool, who did not manage a ​single shot before the break, ​were fortunate to be only ⁠one goal behind.

Hugo Ekitike was the first to have a go but shot wide four minutes into the second half, shortly before Dembele missed the target again, skying his ​effort over the bar from inside the area.

That was as close as the visitors ​got, failing to ⁠manage a single shot on target.

Liverpool did, however, look bolder after the interval, but limited compared to PSG, who played keep-ball and tormented them with brutal changes of pace.

One of them came in the 65th minute when Joao Neves played in ⁠a racing ​Kvaratskhelia and the Georgian danced his way through the area, rounded Mamardashvili ​and slotted the ball home.

Dembele’s angled shot crashed onto the post and Nuno Mendes fluffed a golden chance in the final minutes as Liverpool ​preserved a slim hope of overturning the deficit next Tuesday.

-Reuters

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Atletico Madrid took a firm grip on their Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday as goals from Julian Alvarez and Alexander Sorloth earned a 2-0 first-leg victory over 10-man Barcelona at the Camp Nou.

Barcelona dominated proceedings, but Atletico’s rock-solid defence combined ​with swift counter-attacks paid off after Pau Cubarsi was sent off for hauling down Giuliano Simeone in the 42nd ‌minute as the last man.

Alvarez brilliantly curled the resulting free kick from 25 metres into the top corner in first-half stoppage time to silence the sold-out Catalan stadium.

Marcus Rashford struck the crossbar from a free kick soon after halftime but Diego Simeone’s side remained disciplined and doubled their lead in the 70th minute when Matteo Ruggeri ​crossed from the left and Sorloth volleyed in from close range, sealing a decisive away win that left Barca with a ​mountain to climb.

The winners of the two-legged tie will face either Arsenal or Sporting in the last ⁠four.

“We’re delighted with the win, but there’s still a lot of work to be done. The semi-final is still a long ​way off. We need to stay calm and confident, but keep our feet on the ground,” Antoine Griezmann told Movistar Plus.

With captain Raphinha ​and Frenkie De Jong absent, Barca manager Hansi Flick handed Rashford a start. Pairing the former Manchester United forward with Robert Lewandowski and teenage winger Lamine Yamal, Rashford was lively down the left, constantly stretching the Atletico defence.

He volleyed narrowly wide in the 13th minute and thought he had given Barca ​the lead five minutes later, turning in Yamal’s low cross at the far post, but the celebrations were cut short when VAR ​ruled Yamal offside in the build-up.

Atletico were content to sit deep in a five-man defensive line, conceding possession but few clear chances. Yamal and ‌Rashford probed ⁠persistently, targeting Ruggeri and Nahuel Molina out wide, though space in the final third was at a premium.

Simeone’s side remained dangerous on the break, with Alvarez and Ademola Lookman both wasting promising openings.

At the other end, Rashford forced a smart save from stand-in goalkeeper Juan Musso in the 29th minute before Yamal weaved past three defenders, only to see his shot blocked at close range.

The match turned late in ​the first half. In the ​42nd minute, referee Istvan Kovacs ⁠sent off Cubarsi after a VAR review for hauling down Giuliano Simeone as he raced through on goal, upgrading an initial yellow card to red.

Atletico struck immediately from the resulting free kick, Alvarez ​curling a superb effort into the top right corner beyond the reach of goalkeeper Joan Garcia ​to stun the Camp ⁠Nou.

Barcelona tried to rally after the break but struggled to break down Atletico, who stuck rigidly to their disciplined game plan. The visitors doubled their lead in the 70th minute when Ruggeri combined with substitute Sorloth to finish clinically.

Atletico comfortably saw out the closing minutes to take ⁠a ​commanding advantage into the return leg.

“We tried, but it wasn’t to be,” Barca defender ​Ronald Araujo told Movistar Plus.

“We came out stronger in the second half despite being a man down; we had possession but couldn’t find the net. We’re disappointed ​with the defeat, but I think we can turn it around.”

-Reuters

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