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.
As for his partner in the spine of the defense, summer signing Raphael Varane, who moved over from Real Madrid, his status is in limbo. He got hurt and limped off before halftime yesterday in France’s win over Spain in the UEFA Nations League final.
We’re still awaiting an update from the France side about him, and when we get that we’ll be sure to post it.
If the injury is serious, then the first choice central defense pairings this Saturday against Leicester City would likely be Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly. Which then means that the first guy off the bench would be Phil Jones!
Yes, Phil Jones, who has now become a trending term on Twitter, with United fans worldwide having some fun at the expense of the Englishman who has not featured for MUFC in well over a year and change.
https://twitter.com/viewsdey/status/1447287695282249730
Bur seriously folks, United could be without the center back pairing that cost £123 million to put together, and if that is the case, we need to take a look at what Ole Gunnar Solskjaer might do with his lineup here.
That’s where the Manchester Evening News comes in, they presented four lineup options that OGS might employ.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune.
He co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.