Harry Maguire has suffered a torn hip muscle in another big injury setback for Manchester United.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer recently lost his two leading midfielders,Scott McTominayand Paul Pogba, to injury and now Maguire, his best defender, also faces the prospect of a sustained spell on the sidelines at a time when the United manageralready has pressing issues in central defense.
Maguire missedUnited’s dismal 3-1 defeat to Manchester Cityin the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final at Old Trafford in Tuesday night, when Phil Jones deputised alongside Victor Lindelof in central defense.
He had pulled up in the first half of United’s goalless draw in the FA Cup against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.
Solskjaer said United were close to substituting Maguire at half-time but that the England defender – who has a high pain threshold – insisted on playing on and, in turn, appears to have aggravated the problem.
Maguire looked in significant discomfort as he left Molineux and subsequent scans are believed to have shown that the defender has suffered a muscle tear at the top of his hip. Diogo Dalot, the United right-back, was troubled by a hip problem during pre-season at the start of the season and another defender, Axel Tuanzebe, has also struggled with a hip injury this season.
It is unclear at this stage precisely how long Maguire faces out but his absence is a bitter blow for Solskjaer at a time when the manager is expected to be without McTominay until the end of next month after the midfielder suffers knee ligament damage against Newcastle on Dec 728, whilePogba has recently undergone surgeryon an ankle problem that could keep him out for a month or longer.
The situation is compounded by problems at center-half with Marcos Rojo, who could leave in the transfer window this month, Tuanzebe currently unavailable and Eric Bailly having only recently returned to full training after six months out following knee surgery. Jones suffered cramp at the end of the City match.
Asked about the extent of Maguire’s injury after the City defeat, Solskjaer – whose side face Norwich City at Old Trafford on Saturday – said: “We don’t know – It’s not going to be a long, long, long-term one. So I don’t think he will ready for the weekend but let’s see. ”
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