Wayne Rooney out for Manchester United with injury

Manchester United will be without Wayne Rooney for the near future

Manchester United have been handed several more injury blows at a crucial point in the season with the squad already thinned out.

Wayne Rooney is the latest addition to the lengthy injury report that now features 13 different players. Cameron Borthwick-Jackson and Marouane Fellaini will also miss the Europa League opener with illness and a muscle issue, respectively.

Commenting on the team’s injury news in the press conference prior to the match against Midtjylland, Louis van Gaal provided some updates to MUTV:

"“We have 13 players out and Wayne is one of them. You can never say [how long he could be out for]. He has a knee problem so we have to wait and see.”“Darmian has a dislocated shoulder. It’s not the heaviest type so we are lucky, but he is injured and out. Borthwick-Jackson is ill and cannot play either, so we have 13 players injured or not capable of playing.“I have never had that amount of players injured [before]. When you realise that they are only contact injuries – only Marouane Fellaini maybe has a muscle problem, the rest have contact injuries – it’s unbelievable that we are very unlucky.”"

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In the short term, the injuries to the Manchester United fullbacks are particularly worrisome. Borthwick-Jackson had himself made the jump from the under-21s, and with his illness another of his younger teammates will be thrust into the spotlight. Donald Love will likely start on the right side of the defense in Darmian’s absence, at least until Guillermo Varela can make his return.

That could mean a serious lack of experience in defense in the first Europa League match, though the Red Devils should still be more than capable of dispatching their Danish opposition.

Long term, the Rooney’s injury could cause problems for van Gaal’s squad. The captain had been on a good run of form prior to the injury in the loss against Sunderland. Elaborating on the striker’s issues, van Gaal praised his attitude:

"“Certainly in 2016, he has scored goals and that’s why we had a good run in matches until Sunderland, but we have to cope with that. Everybody can be injured and also the captain can be injured.”"

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"“Wayne [is a player] who wants to go until the end and if he is feeling pain, he doesn’t want to go away [off the field], and certainly when you are drawing a match, he wants to win. That’s a fantastic attitude but also it’s bad for his body.”"

With the limited options at striker, James Wilson may have to be recalled on loan. Otherwise, there are only two other options for how to line up going forward.

Anthony Martial is the obvious choice to move into the central forward position, as he is a natural striker and by far the best attacking player this season. Moving the Frenchman would mean a vacancy at left wing, potentially opening the door for Memphis to return to the starting team. The Dutch international has fallen out of favor in recent months, with the attacking midfield apparently sorted. Depending on the severity of Rooney’s injury, an extended run in the team could be enough for Memphis to save his season and prepare for next.

Alternatively, van Gaal has the option of leaving Martial on the wing, where he has been prolific, and playing a makeshift striker in the no. 9 role. Memphis, Adnan Januzaj (when healthy), and Will Keane are all potential candidates to play in this situation, though none particularly inspire confidence with their goal scoring abilities.

Next: Questions mounting over United's long term future

Unfortunately for Manchester United supporters, the Rooney injury will have serious implications for the team’s attack, with no feasible replacement in the team. The blame for the lack of depth in the team falls squarely on the manager’s shoulders, given his past decisions to trim the team down.

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