Manchester United left-back Luke Shaw is a major doubt for England after sustaining a head injury in the 2-0 derby defeat on Saturday.
Shaw, 26, had been named in Gareth Southgate’s 25-man squad for England’s World Cup qualifiers against Albania and San Marino.
The defender collided with Rodri during Saturday’s Manchester derby and had to be substituted 17 minutes later, which is a long time for someone to play with a head injury, especially when modern science within sport has doubled down on the seriousness of knocks to the upper region.
According to Manchester United, Shaw must pass the FA’s return to play protocols before he can link up with the England squad.
Manchester United have said the following in a statement: “Shaw’s head injury was managed in accordance with FA guidelines and he was removed from the field of play as soon as a concussion was suspected.
“Luke will now be monitored by club medical staff, following the FA return to play protocol, and England will be kept updated on progress.”
One would think Shaw will definitely miss England’s game against San Marino on Friday, but on form alone, Southgate probably has better options to pick this time around.
The United man was crucial for England when they reached the final of Euro 2020, only to lose against Italy, though his performances for United this season have been below par.
Ben Chilwell is a more than worthy replacement and we could do with our players not getting injured during this international break.
Fingers and toes crossed!
SN’s verdict…
Some time off may do Shaw well.
I think he may have been guilty of reading into his hype over the summer because we have not seen Shaw at his best since the Euros.
Throughout last season he was arguably the best left-back in Europe.
The sooner he gets back to that level the better.
