Manchester United travelled to Villa Park with a heavily weakened squad because of AFCON and injuries.
When the Manchester United line-up to face Aston Villa was confirmed, fans quickly realised that Kobbie Mainoo was absent from the matchday squad.
Ruben Amorim confirmed that Kobbie Mainoo has suffered an injury, and things went from bad to worse when Bruno Fernandes pulled his hamstring in the 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa.
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Combined with Amad Diallo, Bryan Mbeumo and Noussair Mazraoui at AFCON, it means that United’s squad depth has been depleted in the space of a week.
Despite the weakened squad, United were unlucky to not beat Villa on Sunday afternoon, with Morgan Rogers scoring two wonder goals to steal three points for the hosts.
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United have injuries and absences across the pitch, and Sunday marked the fourth consecutive start for Ayden Heaven in the heart of defence.
The 19-year-old started alongside Leny Yoro in defence, with Luke Shaw the only experienced defender available.
Speaking on Sky Sports after the full-time whistle, Gary Neville believes Matthijs de Ligt and Harry Maguire are sorely missed in Amorim’s side.
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“I thought they were very good, Manchester United, I thought it was a really good performance,” Neville said.
“But the details of the two goals have cost them. That is going to continue to happen while they don’t have the likes of Maguire and De Ligt and they don’t have players, to be fair, who will make them a lot stronger.”
Ruben Amorim’s strongest defence at Man United
Amorim has not yet been able to field his first-choice back line due to injuries this season.
Lisandro Martinez starred in midfield after coming on to replace the injured Fernandes against Aston Villa.
His impressive second-half cameo could lead to the World Cup winner stepping up into midfield more often, but ideally, Amorim would like him in the back line alongside both Maguire and De Ligt.
Yoro was at fault for both of Rogers’ long-range efforts on Sunday after failing to close him down with enough intensity.
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But given he is part of a very makeshift backline, Amorim won’t be too disappointed with the performance of his young defenders.
Once Maguire and De Ligt return from injury in the coming weeks, expect to see them line up alongside Martinez in what is United’s strongest defensive line.
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