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Raphael Varane and James Garner have both returned to training for Manchester United ahead of their pre-season friendly with Aston Villa this weekend.
Manchester Evening News report that while the duo were both left out of Erik ten Hag's squad to face Crystal Palace on Tuesday, they have since both trained with the rest of their teammates.
The Red Devils have enjoyed a successful pre-season tour as they have beaten Liverpool, Melbourne Victory and Crystal Palace.
Varane, who has been plagued by injury problems since arriving at Manchester United last summer, played against Liverpool but was left out of his team's previous two encounters as a fitness precaution.
Meanwhile, Garner will be eager to impress Ten Hag this season following an incredibly successful loan campaign at Nottingham Forest. His performances in defensive midfield helped the club earn promotion back to the Premier League.
The 21-year-old is yet to play any part in pre-season so far due to an injury, but with the Red Devils in desperate need of a new holding midfielder, Garner will be desperate to get onto the pitch to show off what he can do.
James Garner backed to make step up for Manchester United this season
With Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong linked with a move to Old Trafford all summer, the immediate future for the England U21 international Garner appears unclear.
The Manchester United academy graduate is no doubt a fantastic prospect and former Crystal Palace playmaker Darren Ambrose has backed the youngster to play a key role for the Red Devils.
When asked about De Jong, Ambrose told TalkSPORT:
“I’m 50/50 whether De Jong will end up being a Man United player. But Garner, I think he can make the step up. You look at when a manager comes into a football club, one of the first things they want to do is prove they can improve the players.
“He [Ten Hag] did that at Ajax. And I think he’ll be looking at a player like Garner and thinking, ‘I can prove that I can build a player into a Man United squad’. It’s happened before with young players at Man United. I think Garner is a fantastic player.
“I’m not comparing him to De Jong, but there’s potential that he could grow into that position and play a similar role.”
