Manchester United could be facing an injury crisis in central defense, and this problem could persist for quite awhile. Club captain Harry Maguire had to leave the loss to Aston Villa a couple weeks ago with a calf issue, which kept him out versus both Villarreal and Everton.

He was also not called up to the England squad this international period, and the latest updates from the club were not optimistic, at all, about when he might potentially return. In other words, it could be awhile.

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Manchester United could be set for a major selection problem in central defense when they take on Leicester City on Saturday. With team captain Harry Maguire potentially out for a few weeks due to injury (the team issued an update earlier this week, and it was worrying) they’re already down their first CB.

Now Maguire’s partner in the spine of the back line, Raphael Varane, might be out as well. The Frenchman had to exit today’s UEFA Nations League Final against Spain due to a leg injury.

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Winger Jadon Sancho has really struggled with club this season, but he’s found form again with country. The Manchester United forward has yet to open up his account in 2021/22, as he seems to possibly be adversely affected by having to play in the shadows of Cristiano Ronaldo.

He hasn’t adjusted to life at United yet, since he moved over from Borussia Dortmund, but there is some hope in the fact he started very slowly last season too, but eventually came correct and had a massive season. His strong showing this international period provides additional hope:

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There have been calls to replace manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, by Manchester United supporters, for some time, but lately it feels like the number of people in the #OleOut camp is growing.

Solskjaer’s decision to drop Cristiano Ronaldo against Everton, in a game just before an international break, has drawn a lot of criticism. Sir Alex Ferguson himself expressed disagreement with the decision. And amid this environment, in which an #OleOut campaign has taken off on social media, MUFC Director John Murtough gave the Norwegian a vote of confidence.

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Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba has provided yet another non-update update on his club future this international break. The 28-year-old Frenchman, who is in the final year of his current deal at Old Trafford, has hinted at the fact that he might like to return to Juventus.

“I still speak to my ex-teammates, like Paulo Dybala,” Pogba told Sportmediaset. “I’m at Manchester [United] and have a year left on my contract, and then we’ll see.

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Thursday marked a major victory for Cristiano Ronaldo and his legal team, and with that, a huge loss for Kathryn Mayorga and her lawyers. U.S. federal magistrate judge Daniel Albregts yesterday sided with Ronaldo and against Mayorga, who has a pending civil case pending against the Manchester United superstar, in which she claims the football superstar raped her in Las Vegas in 2009.

The criminal case was re-opened, and later dismissed, but Albregts found that Mayorga’s attorney, Leslie Mark Stovall, based their case on leaked and stolen documents which he said were privileged communications between Ronaldo and his legal team.

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The return of Cristiano Ronaldo to Manchester United has certainly had the desired effect, from a financial standpoint. For the brand, the myth, the legend, the endorsers, his handlers, everyone involved in who he is and what he’s about on an individual level, this has been everything you wanted.

According to Reuters, United’s “$3 billion club’s equity value has risen 12% since the Portuguese striker signed in late August, a period in which the team has only won three in seven games.” Yes, that is a pretty good summation of what has happened so far, and of the post Sir Alex Ferguson portion of the Glazer era.

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It may be international break, and yes that’s boring, very boring, but we still have plenty of Manchester United news items to discuss today. So let’s dive right in, starting with the CIES Football Observatory, their squad valuations and closing with the latest update on Marcus Rashford.

Now take these rankings and numbers with a grain of salt, as it’s anything but an exact science, but it does go to show the quality and value of the players on the United roster, and it makes you wonder why they aren’t winning trophies, with all that quality!

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While Sir Alex Ferguson is no longer in charge at Manchester United, his opinion still carries a lot of sway. Since he retired, the club has, obviously, not been the same. Current manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has improved the club, in some regards, but he still seems clearly out of his depth in his current role as gaffer.

His decision to bench a few of his main stars, including Cristiano Ronaldo, in the 1-1 draw to Everton this past Saturday, is mind-boggling. Ferguson feels CR7 should have started that league fixture, one that was staged right before start of international break.

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Embattled Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer defended his decision to start yesterday’s 1-1 draw to Everton with Cristiano Ronaldo, Jadon Sancho and Paul Pogba on the bench. All three did eventually come on, but none of them impacted the game in a manner commensurate with their potential.

Given that this was the final game before an international break, there was no immediate concern to rest this critical troika of key players, and the Norwegian is now under fire (rightly so) for having done this.

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Today provided an opportunity for Manchester United to go top of the table, at least temporarily before the the Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City results came in, but the Red Devils completely blew it.

They have dominated Everton at home in the league, lately, but all they could manage was a single point, as the two sides settled for a 1-1 draw. United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has won just four of his last nine across all competitions and picked up only one point of a possible six in league play.

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Resting key players right before an international break? Well, that’s a bold strategy to be sure and apparently, Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is a bold man. The Norwegian dropped Cristiano Ronaldo, Paul Pogba and Jadon Sancho today, making sure they’re fresh for Portugal, France and England for the international period that begins in a couple days.

Pogba came on for Fred in the 70′, Ronaldo for Edinson Cavani in the 57′, and Sancho for Anthony Martial in the ’57. The match result was a 1-1 draw at home to Everton.

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