Lack of creativity does not seem to be the only problem that Manchester United is facing right now. They also seem to be facing the lack of left-backs, as Marcos Rojo has also reportedly injured himself in training.
The Argentine, who can play both as a central defender and as a left back, has come under some criticism this season with poor performances. The fact that he missed Manchester United’s pre-season tour in the USA, and that he took the first five weeks of the season to get back into shape, has not exactly made his manager Louis van Gaal too happy either.
However, Rojo seems to have given Van Gaal more headaches, as he injured his shoulder during a practice session on Wednesday, according to the Daily Mirror.
The troublesome shoulder
There is some concern over Rojo’s latest shoulder injury, as he had suffered a dislocated shoulder last season in a match against Manchester City at the Old Trafford. While there are concerns that this latest injury could be a recurrence of the shoulder injury the Argentine suffered in the derby, there has been no confirmation yet to that effect.
The dislocated shoulder had kept the Argentina international out of action for around four weeks last season, and an injury to a defender is the last thing the Manchester United manager would have wanted right now.
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Van Gaal’s headaches
Rojo’s injury has spelled big problems for Van Gaal, as he has been left extremely light in defence, especially in the left-back position. With regular left-back Luke Shaw out with a long term injury after suffering double fractures to his leg, the Dutchman had turned to his left-sided central defender Rojo to fill up that position.
Now, however, even that does not seem to be an option, and Van Gaal could be faced with choosing between Daley Blind and Ashley Young — neither of whom are natural left-backs.
Playing Blind at left-back might leave his centre-back options a bit light, as both Rojo and Phil Jones are injured. Meanwhile, using Ashley Young in that role could leave United defensively vulnerable, something the Dutchman can ill afford with his creative section not working particularly well.
Van Gaal could also gamble with recalling U-21s full-back Cameron Borthwick-Jackson to the main squad, and giving him a spot in the starting XI. If he does that, we might just see yet another star rising from the Manchester United academy — or we may see yet another flop.