Manchester United may be without Eric Bailly for Saturday's Premier League clash against Arsenal.
United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer confirmed the massive injury blow ahead of his side's surprise 2-1 home defeat at the hands of Sheffield United on Wednesday night and was also without Victor Lindelof for the game at Old Trafford.
"Eric was down to play this game but he got a bang yesterday and is sore and bruised. It’s unfortunate for him,” Solskjaer revealed before United's loss.
As a result, Axel Tuanzebe was chosen to partner captain Harry Maguire in central defence.
And Solskjaer may have to do the same at the Emirates Stadium depending on the fitness of Bailly and Lindelof.
With that said, the good news for United is that they have no other fresh injury concerns with long-term absentee Phil Jones still on the sidelines with a knee problem.
That means the likes of Bruno Fernandes, Paul Pogba, Marcus Rashford, and Mason Greenwood should all be in contention to start in north London as United aim to bounce back.
Defeat against the Blades is a huge blow for Man United in their title charge, leaving them one point behind rivals Manchester City despite having played a game more.
But former United defender turned pundit Rio Ferdinand has sent a warning to his old club, telling them 'to answer' this shock result.
"Man United have to answer the next day, if you’re gonna be a title-chasing team, these are the games where you’re gonna have to bring your A-Game every week," he said after the game on BT Sport.
"Bottom of the table, it doesn’t matter, last week, Liverpool - tremendous performance. Bottom of the league Sheffield United; dour, lifeless at times.
"The inconsistency doesn’t win you the league and that’s what we’ve said about Man United for many months, that the inconsistencies from individuals in this team is what is holding them back.
"We thought we’d seen the back of that and now it’s just rearing its head and that’s the unfortunate thing. But listen, it’s not the end of the world, they’re one point off Man City, yes, they have a game in-hand, but this is a reality check for these players."
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