Manchester United’s Paul Pogba injury is worse than expected
Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba’s injury has gone from bad to worse. The dynamic play-maker suffered a hamstring injury in the Red Devils Champions League debut against Basel two weeks ago. The Frenchman was initially thought to be out three to four weeks, but manager Jose Mourinho revealed the extent of the injury could be worse than originally thought.
“Long-term injuries, I don’t speak about them. Ibra, Pogba, Rojo, I don’t think about these players,” Mourinho said to reporters Friday.
“He’s (Pogba) injured, he cannot play tomorrow.”
"“His (Pogba) injury is not one that I can have the hope like I can have with Valencia or Jones. With them, I have the hope to see them training and to have a positive answer.”"
United have fared well without their star player, as they have continued their unbeaten run in both the Premier and Champions league.
However, with injuries to Marouane Fellaini and Michael Carrick there is a sudden lack of depth in the midfield.
Pogba was initially expected to return in mid-October, but Mourinho’s comments have cast a shadow of doubt on that possibility.
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The Red Devils are in the midst of a tough run of games, with a match this Saturday against bottom-of-the-league Crystal Palace and six matches on the horizon for October — including the huge fixture against Liverpool on October 14, the sooner Pogba returns the better.
The 24-year old has had the start to the season surely both him and fans had dreamt of. The one-time world-record transfer was the driving factor behind his teams hot start this season and looking like the player that United spent £89.3 million on in the summer of 2016.
With the injuries to the side currently, this is a perfect opportunity for Ander Herrera to reinsert himself into the lineup.
The Spaniard was United’s player of the season last year, but has found himself relegated to the bench for a majority of time so far this year.
While there can be much debate on whether that is fair for Herrera to be stuck behind Fellaini and Carrick on the depth chart, the ex-Bilbao man finally has his opportunity to come back into the team, and Mourinho is banking on players stepping up and not overlooking Palace on Saturday.
“Some will be out. From all the injuries we had, I hope that I can have some players available.”
“The mentality is very important because we played Wednesday night and we arrived in Manchester at 4 a.m. so home 5 a.m. and we have to play on Saturday, so mentality is very important,” he added.
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Fortunately for United, they are matched up against Crystal Palace this weekend. Palace have yet to score or secure a point this season, and even a Manchester United side missing Paul Pogba should have no issue securing three points.