Manchester United injury report

Manchester United’s crucial victory at the Emirates against Arsenal might have been applauded and appreciated by the media and fans alike, but in hindsight, it has worsened the injury situation at Old Trafford. Wayne Rooney, Patrice Evra and Michael Carrick all picked up knocks during United’s fantastic 2-1 win while Phil Jones was taken off inside the first quarter after hurting his ankle. A similar injury plagued Nani’s stay on the pitch, and he too was substituted in the final quarter.

Rio Ferdinand had been ruled out of the match with a recurrence of his back problem, although the experienced centre-back was expected to start. United’s star players wore battle scars after the final whistle in North London, and a gap of just 6 days before the North-West derby might just prove too little for them to get back to rip-roaring fitness.

Sir Alex Ferguson seemed grim on his team’s current predicament ahead of the FA Cup fourth round contest at Liverpool. “I can’t give you much of an update on injuries. Hopefully we’ll have two or three training this morning and we’ll be better by tomorrow. It is not the best situation for us.”

Back in training and raring to go

The best piece of news surrounding United’s weekend trip to Anfield is the possibility of Tom Cleverly making his second comeback of the season. The midfield sensation had been sidelined for almost 3 months after suffering an ankle injury against Everton last October.

Sir Alex is giving his walking-wounded all the time they need to recover before deciding the team for the high-profile Liverpool game and a clear picture will be available only on matchday.

Ashley Young, Michael Owen are still nursing long-term injuries and both men are still a couple of weeks away from returning while Anderson too is expected to be out for a atleast a fortnight. Darren Fletcher and Nemanja Vidic have long been ruled out for the rest of the season.