Manchester United Injury News: Marcos Rojo Out for Crystal Palace Clash after Dislocating Shoulder
Manchester United have suffered yet another injury in the form of Marcos Rojo after the defender was confirmed to have dislocated his shoulder in the Manchester Derby on Sunday.
The Argentine slid in for a tackle but had to be stretchered off the pitch and had to be replaced by youngster Paddy McNair. Van Gaal confirmed that a timeline for his recovery has not been established, yet he will miss their next game against Crystal Palace scheduled for the weekend.
Rojo is the second defender missing for their upcoming fixture with Chris Smalling also unavailable owing to a red card he received for two fouls he committed in the first half. Their task was doubled with the withdrawals, eventually leading to City's winning goal through Sergio Aguero early into the second half.
"The shoulder is out, you never know how long that will take, I have to wait until tomorrow I think but he shall not play against Crystal Palace," he told Sky Sports.
The Red Devils are currently in tenth spot, joint with Newcastle on 13 points, four clear of a top four spot and 13 behind Chelsea who are looking to tuck in the league title with games to spare. Van Gaal was visibly frustrated by Smalling's bookings, each his own doing, and revealed that he expected the England international to show more common sense on the ground.
"I didn't see the first yellow, but as a player if you know you have a yellow card you have to deal with that problem. I don't think he dealt with it very smartly because then we have 11 against 10 and that's the most difficult way you can play for 45 minutes," the Dutchman said.
The former Ajax manager is not worried about their current state with the backline strewn with a series of injuries to key players. The partnership between Carrick and McNair has caught his eye and he is likely to persist with the same against Palace next weekend.
"We have a lot of injuries in defence but you have seen how Michael Carrick and Paddy McNair came in. I don't think that is the problem," explained Van Gaal.
"We still have 11 players to play and also very good players, so I don't cry for that but it is sometimes difficult to select the best team, but I think I can manage that and we are close, you can see it every week, but you need more points.
"I see the fans are applauding after the game, so they see also that the boys are willing to give everything for the shirt of the club," he concluded.
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