Uefa Champions League previews: Ashley Young to miss Manchester United’s Moscow trip

In other European Cup news, Manchester City midfielder Jesus Navas will face Sevilla in Group D on Wednesday night, almost two years after leaving his hometown club for the Premier League.

Manchester City midfielder Jesus Navas will face Sevilla in Group D on Wednesday night, almost two years after leaving his hometown club for the Premier League. Jason Cairnduff / Reuters

Manchester United

Winger Ashley Young will not feature in Manchester United's Uefa Champions League match at CSKA Moscow on Wednesday night after sitting out Tuesday's pre-match training session with a calf injury. Young was absent for Saturday's 3-0 win at Everton and manager Louis van Gaal confirmed that he would not travel to Moscow for the Group B game, along with Luke Shaw (broken leg), Paddy McNair (liver damage) and James Wilson (illness). "It's the same amount of injuries so Luke Shaw, Paddy McNair and Ashley Young are not going with us," Van Gaal told MUTV. "'Willo' was a little bit ill – Wilson as he is named, but for us it is Willo – so he shall not travel with us."

Atletico Madrid

Atletico Madrid striker Fernando Torres says his side must take maximum points from their two Group C encounters with Champions League debutants Astana in the next two weeks to get their European campaign back on track. The Spanish side host the Kazakh champions on Wednesday night, hoping to make amends for their first home defeat in the European competition for six years, against Benfica, last time out. However, having made the quarter-finals in each of the past two seasons, Torres is determined to reach the knockout stages as group winners to ensure an easier path to the last eight once more. “We knew it was very important to win at Galatasaray ahead of the home match against Benfica. We won in Turkey, but it wasn’t our plan to lose here at home against Benfica,” the former Liverpool and Chelsea striker told Uefa.com.

Manchester City

Manchester City midfielder Jesus Navas will face Sevilla in Group D on Wednesday night, almost two years after leaving his hometown club for the Premier League. “It’s going to be very emotional for me because it is the club I will support all my life and the club that gave me everything,” said Navas, who made 393 appearances and scored 34 goals while helping Sevilla win two Uefa Cups and two Copas del Rey. “We’ll have to be very focused mentally because it will be difficult, but we have to go out there looking for the three points,” Navas said on Sevilla’s club radio station.

Juventus

Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri has demanded his side forget their domestic woes with a Group D win over Borussia Monchengladbach that would put them within sight of the last 16. An underwhelming start to the Serie A season has left Juventus just four points above the relegation zone and nine points behind leaders Fiorentina after eight games. On Sunday, Juve snatched a point from a pulsating scoreless draw away to Inter Milan. After the game, Allegri alluded to Juve’s split personalities in a post on Twitter, writing: “We played a good game, now let us see #euroJuve and get focused on the Champions League.”

PSV Einhoven

PSV Einhoven are likely to welcome back captain Luuk de Jong for their Group B match against Wolfsburg after he recovered from an ankle injury. The striker was injured during his team’s 3-2 loss in Moscow two weeks ago, but made his return to first-team action as a second-half substitute in Saturday’s 1-1 league draw with Excelsior Rotterdam. “The ankle feels good, so that gives me confidence,” De Jong told Dutch daily De Telegraaf. PSV, the 1988 European champions, are top of Group B on goals scored with Manchester United, CSKA and Wolfsburg also on three points.

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