Ella Toone Injury Update: Man Utd & England star set for post-international break return
ella toone is being targeted to return to first-team action after the April international break, Manchester United Women head coach Marc Skinner said, with the club eyeing the away trip to Tottenham on 26 April as the intended comeback. She has been sidelined since December with a hip injury and watched United’s Champions League first-leg defeat to Bayern Munich from the stands. Skinner stressed the timeline is conditional on how her training progresses and that no risks will be taken.
Ella Toone: recovery timeline and what it means
Skinner set out a cautious plan for Ella Toone’s reintroduction to full training and match action. “The plan is, hopefully, the game after the international break, ” Marc Skinner, Manchester United Women head coach, said, framing that fixture at Tottenham on 26 April as the club’s target if rehabilitation continues smoothly. He added that Toone “is training on the field, she’s doing individual bits, she’ll hopefully be back with more team bits soon enough, ” underlining a step-by-step approach rather than a rushed return.
This timetable would rule Toone out of United’s upcoming derby at Old Trafford and the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich, both matches she will not play in while the club prioritises her long-term fitness.
Team picture for the Manchester derby and Europe
Skinner confirmed a number of absences for the build-up to the derby: Anna Sandberg, Dominique Janssen, Ellen Wangerheim and Leah Galton were not in the Champions League matchday squad because of various fitness issues, while Celin Bizet Donnum remains unavailable as she is expecting a baby. There are positives elsewhere: Marc Skinner noted Jayde Riviere “will be further along with her availability” and that Elisabeth Terland, who was an unused substitute in the Bayern game, “will hopefully be okay. “
On immediate selection for Saturday’s Old Trafford meeting with Manchester City, Skinner was clear there would be limited returns: “Probably not, ” he replied when asked whether sidelined players would be back for that match, though Layla Drury will rejoin the squad after missing the Champions League list.
Immediate reactions and the manager’s posture
Marc Skinner emphasised caution over headlines and optimistic comebacks. He framed the club’s approach as methodical: progressing Toone’s availability from individual on-field work to “more team bits” and only moving to match readiness when staff are satisfied. That measured posture aims to protect both the player’s long-term fitness and United’s run-in across domestic and European competitions.
Quick context
Toone has not featured since December because of a hip problem; the manager confirmed she watched the recent Champions League tie from the stands. United face Manchester City at Old Trafford this Saturday and are balancing domestic duties with a Champions League quarter-final tie over two legs.
What’s next
Manchester United will monitor Ella Toone’s progression through individual and then team training in the coming weeks, with the club targeting the post-international window match at Tottenham on 26 April as the earliest realistic return. The immediate focus for the squad is Saturday’s derby at Old Trafford and the upcoming European second leg; the timeline for ella toone will be revisited by staff as she increases her training load and clears each step in the rehabilitation plan.
