Manchester United are facing a mounting injury crisis before the season has even kicked off.
Erik ten Hag has revealed that there are question marks over the fitness of Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Luke Shaw ahead of Saturday’s Community Shield clash with Manchester City at Wembley.
The Red Devils are already without Leny Yoro and Rasmus Hojlund due to injuries before a competitive ball has even been kicked.
Maguire was absent from last weekend’s friendly loss to Liverpool in South Carolina and Ten Hag has confirmed that the England defender is among several doubts for this weekend.
“Harry Maguire missed the game as a precaution,” the United manager explained. “There’s still a question mark for Saturday. We have training and we have to see whether he is fit enough or not to be available.
“Victor played, but also he’s a question mark and also Azza (Wan-Bissaka) and Luke Shaw are both question mark. We have to assess them tomorrow.”
With limited options available, Lisandro Martinez and Jonny Evans may form United’s centre-half partnership. Ten Hag insists he will not take unnecessary risks at Wembley, despite his desire to secure another victory over City, following their FA Cup final triumph.
“We always want to win, also in all the friendlies,” he said. “It’s about trophy. We will put out a team that is very competitive to win this trophy.
“But it’s also pre-season and we don’t take risks with players. That’s the normal approach to this game.”
Several United stars, including Kobbie Mainoo, have returned to Carrington this week after missing the club’s pre-season tour of the US. Ten Hag has revealed that each player has been given a tailored training programme to get them match fit.
“That is individual based,” he stated. “Everyone has a different background. We put them on off-season programmes, but they have had different starts while we were in USA.”
Content Source: www.express.co.uk