Louis van Gaal has confirmed attacking duo of Memphis Depay and James Wilson have picked up injuries against Middlesbrough and will miss Manchester United’s weekend trip to Crystal Palace.
Both the winger and the striker started for the Red Devils in the fourth round of the Capital One Cup against Middlesbrough. Wilson was replaced by Wayne Rooney after the break, while the Dutch international was replaced in the second half.
United lost to the Championship side on penalties. For the clash against Middlesbrough, Antonio Valencia was also ruled out, along with Ashley Young. The Ecuadorian winger-turned full-back picked up a foot injury against Manchester City.
Depay and Wilson now join Valencia in the treatment room and the trio will miss United’s trip to Selhurst Park on Saturday.
“Willo [Wilson] was injured but also Memphis Depay was injured. It was a very bad game afterwards because we lost on penalties and also we lost two players. We have to wait and see [how long they are unavailable for] because it was only two days ago,” the manager told MUTV.
With injuries to Wilson and Depay, it is likely that Wayne Rooney will play up front and summer signing Anthony Martial will start on the left side of the wings. The England international has struggled while playing in the No 9 position.
At the same time, Rooney playing up front has seen Martial move on the wings. This has also had its impact on the France international’s performance, especially after the 19-year-old had a good start to his Old Trafford career.
It will be better if Rooney is either dropped or played in the No 10 role – taking his recent form into account – and Martial up front. This could see Andreas Pereira play on the left wing. However, the Brazilian played the full 120 minutes in the fourth round of the Capital One Cup tie and it is unlikely he will start over the weekend.
It does look Rooney will play as the lone striker and United fans can only hope the former Everton striker manages to find the back of the net against Alan Pardew’s side. Meanwhile, Paddy McNair and Luke Shaw are also on the sidelines for a long spell and they will miss the fixture against Palace.
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