Manchester United left worried as star misses training with national team after picking up knock in World Cup qualifier

Modified Oct 15, 2023 16:36 GMT

Manchester United are sweating over midfielder Casemiro's potential injury after the 31-year-old missed Brazil's training after injuring his ankle in the 1-1 draw with Venezuela on Thursday (October 12).

Casemiro limped off with 11 minutes to go in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying clash at the Arena Pantanal in Cuaiba. The hosts - leading through Gabriel Martinelli's 50th-minute opener - conceded a late equalizer to Eduard Bello.

It marked the first time the Selecao dropped points in three qualifying games as they trail Argentina (9) by two points in the CONMEBOL standings. Brazil manager Fernando Diniz said after the game that Casemiro had asked to be substituted (as per METRO):

"Casemiro asked to come off due to a blow to his ankle."

However, as per GLOBO Esporte (via METRO), the injury was serious enough to force Casemiro to miss Saturday's (October 14) training ahead of the trip to Montevideo to face Uruguay on Tuesday (October 17).

The Manchester United midfielder played through the pain for large swathes of the second half following a right ankle sprain, which caused his foot to swell. Casemiro is currently undergoing physiotherapy at the team hotel and is a major doubt for the Uruguay game.

If he misses the game, Casemiro will probably also miss Manchester United's next game at rock-bottom Sheffield United on October 21. The Brazilian has been one of the Red Devils' key players this season, with four goals and an assist in 11 games across competitions.

Manchester United football director concerned about club's lengthy injury list

Manchester United have made a poor start to their 2023-24 season, losing six times across competitions. That includes four losses in the league - two at home - in eight games.

With 12 points, the Red Devils are only tenth in the Premier League, trailing surprise leaders Tottenham Hotspur by eight points. However, the side have not been helped by a mounting injury list, including several key players.

United sporting director John Murtough said that there have been 16 first-team players injured since the season started. He said, as per METRO, that the club are investigating why there have been so many injuries:

"There are some strong mitigations for the mixed results so far, including 16 first-team players being injured or unavailable for periods since the start of the season."

"That’s two-thirds of the squad and means that Erik has not been able to pick his strongest XI once this season. We’re also looking at why we’ve had so many injuries to see if there’s any patterns to improve prevention in future."

United return to action following the international break next weekend against a Sheffield side who are winless in eight league games this season.

Edited by Bhargav