Harry Maguire has had quite a journey this season at Manchester United. At first he was buried way down the depth chart, but eventually he ascended to first team regular as the campaign progressed.
Maguire has been so key that NBC Sports actually chose a football of him, as the United player representative for their promos of Sunday’s huge match at Liverpool.
Manchester United at Liverpool FC FYIs
Kickoff: Dec. 17, Anfield, 4:30pm
Team News: Man United Liverpool
Starting XI Predictions: Man United Liverpool
Transatlantic Passage: How the Premier League Redefined Soccer in America: LINK
Google Result Probability: Liverpool win 73% Draw 15% Man United win 12%
PL Form: Man United LWLWW Liverpool WWWDW
PL Standing: Man United 6th, 27 pts Liverpool 1st, 37 pts
Man United Team News
That seems a bit extreme, on the part of NBC, especially given how Maguire was juxtaposed against Mohamed Salah for Liverpool.
That’s quite a gulf in the level of quality there, but that is another discussion for another time. Maguire hobbled off early in Wednesday’s 1-0 embarrassment at the hands of Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League.
The exact nature of the injury hasn’t been specified, but manager Erik ten Hag said earlier today that Maguire “will not be available for the coming games.
Elsewhere Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford missed the Bayern defeat due to an unspecified illness, with former set miss out here but the latter available for selection.
Said Ten Hag: “Luke Shaw trained this morning, so we think he’s available for Sunday. Marcus Rashford (is available).
Shaw had provided an injury scare for the team and their fans, after he suffered a hamstring injury in midweek. Victor Lindelof is a doubt here, but he has resumed back training after having the missed the last two.
Mason Mount, Christian Eriksen, Amad Diallo, Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro and Tyrell Malacia all remain out as long-term injury absentees while Bruno Fernandes will serve a match ban here. Finally, Jadon Sancho remains frozen out.
Yes, it is a very long injury/suspension list indeed!
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now, while writing for the International Baseball Writers Association of America. You can follow the website on Twitter.