Man United: Eriksen injury is ‘devastating’

Manchester United‘s hopes of finishing in the top four could be impacted by the ‘devastating’ injury blow to Christian Eriksen, according to journalist Steve Bates.

The Lowdown: Eriksen injured

Man United have now issued an official injury update detailing that Eriksen is expected to be ruled out until late April or early May, as a result of a tackle by Andy Carroll in the 3-1 victory against Reading in the FA Cup.

The Red Devils moved swiftly to bring in a replacement on deadline day, with Marcel Sabitzer arriving on loan from Bayern Munich until the end of the season.

However, Scott McTominay also has an injury concern, and could be out for multiple weeks, meaning Erik ten Hag is light on options.

The Latest: Bates’ comments

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT about the impact that the injury may have, Bates said:

“This is a devastating blow for Ten Hag and also for the club’s top four hopes because they maybe could have coped if he’d been missing for two or three weeks, but three months is a real big chunk of the season.

“You only have to look at United’s fixture list in February, I think they’ve got eight games in something like 28, 29 days, which is a real heavy workload.

“And not to have the composure of someone like Eriksen and the experience of someone like him in the midfield for ten Hag, particularly in those two Europa League games against Barcelona.”

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The Verdict: Blow for Ten Hag

The signing of Sabitzer will alleviate some of Erik ten Hag’s concerns, given the Austrian’s track record in the Bundesliga, weighing in with 34 goals and 29 assists in 185 appearances in the German top flight.

That said, the 28-year-old is an unproven quantity in English football, so the manager will be hoping that he is able to adjust to the pace of the Premier League as soon as possible.

During the 2022/23 campaign, Eriksen has featured in a deeper midfield role than he has become accustomed to throughout his career, but he already has nine assists to his name in all competitions, proving to be one of the main creative forces in the United midfield.

Hailed as a ‘brilliant’ by media members, the Denmark international has been back to his best this season, and it will be a very difficult task to replace his playmaking talents, but hopefully Sabitzer will be up to the task.