Ronaldo out? Manchester United dealt severe blow as four first team players set to miss the Manchester Derby
Four senior players are set to miss Manchester United’s trip across the city to take on Manchester City on Sunday afternoon, according to reports.
These include striking pair Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani, both of whom were not with the 21 man squad that travelled to the hotel ahead of the clash with Pep Guardiola’s side.
Cristiano Ronaldo not with the #mufc squad tonight. Neither was Edinson Cavani, unsurprisingly. The usual 21 players (three goalkeepers) have assembled.
— Samuel Luckhurst (@samuelluckhurst) March 5, 2022
Manager Ralf Rangnick had previously suggested that Cavani, who had missed the last five games with a groin injury, would be fit to play in the derby, but it seems as though that has not been proved true, and the Uruguayan’s stuttering season continues.
Ronaldo, meanwhile, has also been ruled out through injury, leaving Marcus Rashford as the only recognised striker in the squad. Bruno Fernandes could also play as a false 9 if required.
Additionally, the Manchester Evening News report that ‘Raphael Varane and Luke Shaw were also not accounted for when the squad arrived at their pre-match base on Saturday evening’.
Should this prove to be the case, it would mean four key absentees for Rangnick to deal with. Combined with Harry Maguire’s failure to get out of the rut of form he finds himself in, it hardly has the hallmarks of a recipe for success against the current champions of England.
Who needs the win?
The game is massive for both sides. Should Manchester City fail to win, they will increase the pressure on themselves and allow Liverpool the opportunity to move level with them on points should the Reds win their game in hand, throwing away what was once a nine-point lead in the process.
Manchester United, meanwhile, could slip down to fifth should they lose and Arsenal win, out of the vaunted Champions League spot for next season. Worse yet, the Gunners would have three games in hand on the Red Devils, making them nailed on favourites to finish in that position.
Neither side can afford anything but a win.
Read more:
Manchester City vs Manchester United: Combined XI
Watford vs Arsenal betting tips: Premier League preview, predictions and odds
This article was edited by Josh Barker.
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Premier League table
# | Team | MP | D | P |
1 | AFC Bournemouth | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2 | Arsenal FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
3 | Aston Villa | 0 | 0 | 0 |
4 | Brentford FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
5 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 0 | 0 |
6 | Chelsea FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
7 | Crystal Palace | 0 | 0 | 0 |
8 | Everton FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
9 | Fulham FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
10 | Leeds United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
11 | Leicester City | 0 | 0 | 0 |
12 | Liverpool FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
13 | Manchester City | 0 | 0 | 0 |
14 | Manchester United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
15 | Newcastle United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
16 | Nottingham Forest | 0 | 0 | 0 |
17 | Southampton FC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
18 | Tottenham Hotspur | 0 | 0 | 0 |
19 | West Ham United | 0 | 0 | 0 |
20 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Player | Team | Goals |
---|---|---|
Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 23 |
Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 23 |
Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 18 |
Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 17 |
Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 16 |
De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 15 |
Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 15 |
Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 15 |
Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace | 14 |
Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City | 13 |
Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 12 |
Maddison, James | Leicester City | 12 |
Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 12 |
Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 11 |
Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 11 |
Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City | 11 |
Richarlison | Everton FC | 11 |
Pukki, Teemu | Norwich City | 11 |
Raphinha | Leeds United | 11 |
Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa | 11 |
Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
---|---|---|---|
Mings, Tyrone | Aston Villa | 0 | 11 |
Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 10 |
Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 11 |
Firpo, Junior | Leeds United | 0 | 11 |
Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 0 | 10 |
Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 0 | 10 |
Brownhill, Josh | Burnley FC | 0 | 10 |
Bednarek, Jan | Southampton FC | 0 | 10 |
Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 10 |
Moreno, Rodrigo | Leeds United | 0 | 9 |
Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 9 |
Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 9 |
Rudiger, Antonio | Chelsea FC | 0 | 9 |
Mctominay, Scott | Manchester United | 0 | 9 |
Salisu, Mohammed | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 0 | 8 |
Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 0 | 8 |
Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 7 |
Richarlison | Everton FC | 0 | 8 |
Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 1 | 7 |
Player | Team | Assists |
---|---|---|
Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 13 |
Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 12 |
Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City | 11 |
Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 10 |
Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 10 |
Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 10 |
Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 10 |
Maddison, James | Leicester City | 9 |
James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 9 |
Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 9 |
Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 9 |
De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 8 |
Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 8 |
Kulusevski, Dejan | Tottenham Hotspur | 8 |
Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 7 |
Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 7 |
Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 7 |
Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 7 |
Mbeumo, Bryan | Brentford FC | 7 |
Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 6 |