Another dreadful showing for Manchester United this past weekend, and it wasn’t just the match result that provided more negativity for the club. The Red Devils saw both Raphael Varane and Victor Lindelof subbed off with injury issues during the dreadful draw with lower table Brentford.
Jonny Evans (unspecified injury) also missed out. Staving off a total injury crisis in central defense however was the good news of Lisandro Martinez returning to action, after being out a couple months with a knee injury.
Manchester United at Chelsea FC FYIs
Kick: Thurs. Apr. 4, 8:15 pm, Stamford Bridge
Starting XI Predictions: Chelsea FC Manchester United
Team News: Chelsea FC Manchester United
Transatlantic Passage: How the Premier League Redefined Soccer in America: LINK
Google Result Probability: Chelsea FC win 48% Draw 23% Manchester United 29%
PL Standing, Form Guide: Chelsea FC 11th, 40 pts, DWDDW Manchester United 6th, 48 pts, DWLLW
United Team News
You also had Harry Maguire, who returned from his own injury absence to feature off the bench. Regardless of what you think of Slab Head (and there are certainly no shortage of opinions on him), it is good to have another body in there. Also, it is thought that the issues with Lindelof and Varane are just precautionary.
Meanwhile Anthony Martial, Altay Bayindir, Tyrell Malacia and Luke Shaw will all continue remaining sidelined for this one. Other than Shaw, none of them would typically feature anyway.
Malacia is and has been AWOL for the season (the club have really kept all relevant information about his situation under wraps this season) while Martial will likely see his time at the club come to an end soon.
The Frenchman appears to be going out with a whimper.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also 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.”
He currently contributes to Ravens Wire, part of the USA Today SMG’s NFL Wire Network and the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and the Washington Times. You can follow him on Twitter.