Another unwanted injury has left Luke Shaw back at square one as he begins a new quest to return to match fitness.
Luke Shaw has not started a game for Manchester United since February. He appeared to be nearing the end of that streak, after three consecutive substitute appearances.
Last night’s game against Arsenal looked like it might provide an opportunity, with Lisandro Martinez suspended.
24 hours before the fixture, Shaw revealed he had suffered a new injury that would keep him out for a short period.
The defender released a statement, describing his feelings as ‘absolutely devastated’, and pledging to be back as soon as possible.
Shaw ‘did not mean to get injured’
Luke Shaw has had a bad injury record through his career, going back to a horror injury sustained as a teenager against PSV.
He suffered four injuries last season and already he has had two injury problems in 2024/25, that have conspired to leave him with just 94 minutes of action across three games off the bench.
Shaw’s situation was discussed on MUTV before the Arsenal fixture, and former United centre-back Wes Brown has sympathy.
Brown suffered his own fair share of injury problems during his career, and he would like fans and pundits to be understanding of Shaw’s situation.
He said: “The lads’ not meant to get injured. You know, it’s happened, and he’s got to deal with it, and not only himself and his family and your close friends, deal with it, with him.
“He doesn’t want to be injured. It’s frustrating. You know, it’s been so long now, so all we wish him the best and that he just, doesn’t rush it back and gets back to to the fitness that and healthy and ready to play again.
“Until then we need to leave him alone and let him get on with it. But it’s a horrible situation, again there’s probably nothing worse with with what he’s gone through.”
There is reason Shaw put a statement out
Shaw’s statement made clear he is suffering from a mental standpoint as much as a physical one, knowing that Manchester United are depending on him.
Fellow pundit Danny Webber agreed with Brown: “The reason he’s put the statement out, he wanted to let everybody know, the fans know that he’s trying, you know, and he’s he’s not just sat there in a place where he’s happy to be injured.
“He’s not. He wants to play. He’s tried to come back numerous times, and he cares.
“If he didn’t care, he wouldn’t put the statement out. And I feel for him, and I know what it’s like, where you come back and you’re excited to come back, and then you break down.
“The scrutiny on them nowadays means it doesn’t go unnoticed, and somebody’s always got something to say, especially when we haven’t had a wealth of people playing in that position.
“It’s different if somebody comes in in your position, and it’s natural, like Malacia was injured as well, we’ve not had a natural left footed player on the left hand side for a while, so it magnifies it as well.”
Webber added: “When he’s fit, he’s the best left back in the country, bar nobody.”
Ruben Amorim backs Luke Shaw
Speaking before the United game to Prime Video, United head coach Ruben Amorim explained what he told Luke Shaw, and gave him his total backing.
Amorim said: “What I said to him, as a coach is, that since I am here, I saw him in the medical department. I saw him in the gym. I saw him losing weight. I saw him training.
“So he did everything right. Sometimes, when you have one or two injuries, it’s really hard to recover.
“If he continues with this behaviour, doing everything he can, I will be here. All the staff will be here, as long as it takes.
“We believe a lot in him, he’s so important for our team. For the future, I see in this team, Luke is a very important player for us.”
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