Manchester United midfielder Anthony Martial has been forced to withdraw from Didier Deschamps’ latest France squad after picking up an injury against Wolverhampton Wanderers over the weekend.
The United attacker played the full 90 minutes in a disappointing 2-1 defeat to Nuno Espirito Santo’s side but felt severe pain in his knee following the FA Cup quarter-final exit.
Martial had only just returned to action following a month on the sidelines due to a groin problem suffered during the first leg Champions League defeat to Paris Saint-Germain . But a fresh problem has emerged and the French national team confirmed he was forced to withdraw.
Doctors of both Manchester United and France agreed he should remain at the club’s Carrington base, with Thomas Lemar called up in his place for matches against Moldova and Iceland.
It’s unknown at this stage how serious Martial’s knee injury is, but Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will hope to have him back for Manchester United’s next match against Watford at the end of March.
Teddy Sheringham has claimed that his former strike partner Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has already been given the Manchester United job on a permanent basis.
Solskjaer has been in interim charge since replacing Jose Mourinho in December, during which time he has transformed the club’s fortunes to drag them into the quarter-finals of the Champions League and back into the top-four race domestically.
United initially planned to wait until the summer before appointing a permanent successor, but United’s form under the Norwegian had led them to consider bringing the announcement forward.
Successive defeats against Arsenal and Wolverhampton Wanderers have prompted the first questions regarding Solskjaer’s leadership, but Sheringham believes that it is already a done deal.
“I’ve heard they’ve given it to him already,” Sheringham told BBC 5Live.
Sheringham later added to BBC Sport: “Last two games a bit of a blip but I think he’s been a breath of fresh air to be honest. I think there was a lot of people surprised when he first got the job.
“He’s come in and he’s brought in all the old traditions of what Sir Alex [Ferguson] used to portray to us: what it’s like to play for Manchester United, the privilege of the players and all the players that have played before us, you know, a real honour to wear the shirt.
“I think that’s been instilled in the players again. They’ve got a life about them. A desire to work hard for the shirt and really put in a shift. He’s obviously doing a fantastic job. He’s obviously excelled his expectations since he’s gone in there. He’s got to get the job.”
Solskjaer has won 14 of his 19 games in charge of United across all competitions – the same number of games Mourinho won in his final 32 matches at the helm
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