Interim Man Utd boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been dealt a major blow as he has confirmed Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial could be out for up to three weeks.
The attacking duo were both forced off in the midweek game against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League, and as seen in the tweet below, the Norwegian tactician confirmed the news in his press conference on Friday.
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That will be a massive setback for him, as given his preference for having pace, movement and energy in the final third, he’ll lose a lot of that with Lingard and Martial being sidelined.
That in turn will now force him to re-consider his approach with the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Juan Mata ready to step in along with Alexis Sanchez.
However, that won’t soften the blow given the fact that United have several crucial games coming up which Lingard and Martial may now miss.
The Red Devils face Chelsea in the FA Cup on Monday night, followed by a showdown with Liverpool at Old Trafford the following Sunday. As per the tweet below, Solskjaer doesn’t expect to have them at his disposal for either.
There is also the second leg against PSG on March 6, with a trip to face Arsenal at the Emirates on March 10 and the derby with Manchester City six days later.
It’s expected that the pair should be back by the PSG game given the touted timeline, but Man Utd will now be desperately hoping that they come through unscathed in their respective recoveries and avoid setbacks, which could ensure that they remain sidelined for longer than initially projected.
Solskjaer says Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial are out for two to three weeks. Mason Greenwood, who might've travelled to Chelsea, is also out injured. #mufc
— Samuel Luckhurst (@samuelluckhurst) February 15, 2019
“I don't think we will see them in the next two games,” Ole told MUTV. “Let's hope they heal quickly, but it looks like they might be out for 2-3 weeks. Again, Antonio [Valencia] is out, Matteo [Darmian] is out, but apart from that we are good to go.” #MUFC @EmiratesFACup https://t.co/qUxHrtPkBr
— Ben Dinnery (@BenDinnery) February 15, 2019
