Carlisle United could come up against a former Manchester United midfielder this weekend.

Their opponents Northampton Town have just handed ex-Red Devils man Josh Harrop a deal.

Harrop, 26, has been training with the Cobblers in recent weeks, and has now signed a short-term contract.

The move sees the player drop into League Two after a spell in the Championship with Preston North End.

His time at Deepdale followed a spell at Manchester United, where Harrop came through the academy ranks.

He scored for Man Utd's first team in his only Premier League appearance for the club.

That came in a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace at Old Trafford in May 2017.

He joined Preston in the summer of 2017 where, as well as making loan moves to Fleetwood Town and Ipswich Town, he made 95 first-team appearances, scoring 13 goals.

He left the Lilywhites in September and will now aim to bolster third-placed Northampton's League Two promotion challenge.

Jon Brady's side are five point clear of the play-off places ahead of this Saturday's clash with Paul Simpson's Blues.

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