Medical expert: Nemanja Matic ‘on the brink’ at Man United after Carrington ‘clue’
Nemanja Matic is “on the brink” of fitness at Man United but the return of the likes of Paul Pogba means there is no need to take any risks.
That is the view of injury expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in medicine and data analysis.
Matic has not featured for United since a six-minute substitute appearance in the 3-1 win over Brentford last month (19 January).
The Serbian has suffered a shin injury, although he was named on the bench for the recent games against West Ham and Burnley.
But he was absent from the matchday squad entirely for United’s 1-1 draw with Southampton on Saturday (12 February).
Interim United boss Ralf Rangnick told club media the day before the clash that the midfielder “couldn’t train for the last two training sessions.”
Dinnery suggests that United do not need to hurry the 33-year-old back from injury given the level of availability in their squad.
“It’s difficult because we don’t know if it’s an overuse problem or an impact injury,” he told Football Insider‘s Adam Williams.
“We have some clue from what was saw on Friday. He was part of the squad that faced Burnley but Rangnick said he wasn’t able to play any minutes.
“So he’s on the brink of availability but Pogba and McTominay have returned, and Fred is close. So you can afford to give him that additional recovery time.
“It certainly doesn’t sound as if it’s too severe. If it was an overuse problem they would be wise to err on the side of caution.”
Matic has two assists in 20 appearances across all competitions this term.
United are up to 5th in the league table despite dropping points against the Saints.
In other news, ex-Fifa official claims Man United star Bruno Fernandes could face FA action “today” after footage emerges.