Manchester United are without the services of Luke Shaw, Marcos Rojo and Paddy McNair when they face Sunderland in the Premier League tie at Old Trafford on Saturday.
The Argentine international and the versatile defender missed the Red Devils’ Capital One Cup third round 3-0 victory over Ipswich Town. The duo are still recovering from injuries. In addition to this, the former Southampton left-back suffered a horror injury during the Champions League clash against PSV Eindhoven.
Shaw is set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines. Apart from the trio, the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager has no injury worries for the clash against struggling Black Cats.
“We have three injuries – Rojo, Shaw and Paddy McNair. It’s the same and we have to wait to see how the players recover because there are only two days between the two matches. Until now I don’t know how I’ll put the line-up,” Van Gaal explained.
Louis van Gaal tells #MUTV that Rojo, Shaw & McNair remain injured & he wants to see how his other players recover from the Ipswich game.
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) September 25, 2015
The Dutchman also revealed to have held conversation with Shaw, who returned to England following a successful surgery after suffering double fracture.
“I spoke to him last night. He was very positive. It’s amazing for me. There are very good signals. We have already started the rehabilitation. He shall be visited at home for the first electro muscle stimulants, so I think it’s very good,” the former Netherlands manager said.
In the absence of Shaw and Rojo, Van Gaal can rely on his compatriot Daley Blind in the left-back position. However, with McNair injured and Phil Jones recovering from injury, despite featuring against Ipswich, United manager has a tough decision to make while selecting his left-back.
The other two options are Ashley Young and Matteo Darmian. If the Italian international is deployed in the left-back position, Antonio Valencia could start at the right-back position after impressing in the midweek clash.
Darmian could stick to his regular place in the starting lineup, if Young is made to play as a left-back against Sunderland. The visitors are without a win in the Premier League and are already eliminated from the Capital One Cup.
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