Manchester United have been rocked by the news that the injury Alejandro Garnacho sustained in Sunday's stalemate with Southampton is worse than initially feared.
Garnacho, 18, has made a big impression after breaking into the first-team picture under Erik ten Hag this season and even earned his first senior international call-up for Argentina last week.
The talented teenager could be seen struggling after he was on the receiving end of a heavy tackle from Kyle Walker-Peters during United's drab 0-0 draw with the Saints at the weekend. And it appears as though Garnacho, who was seen leaving Old Trafford on crutches, could be set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines as a result of the incident.
According to TYC Sports, Garnacho was sent for tests on the issue and it appears as though the youngster's injury is worse than first feared. The report doesn't outline any sort of timeframe but it does note that Garnacho is now expected to miss out on Argentina's upcoming international fixtures.
Garnacho was in contention to win his first senior cap after the winger made the decision to represent Argentina over Spain. He had harboured hopes of making Lionel Scaloni's World Cup squad before the tournament kicked off in Qatar in November but failed to make the grade.
Despite his failure to make the world champion's squad, Garnacho has enjoyed a breakthrough season at club level. He has clocked up 29 appearances for United in all competitions, scoring four goals and registering five assists and established himself as a firm fans favourite.
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The winger, who replaced Jadon Sancho late in the second-half of Sunday's match, had only been on the pitch for a matter of minutes before he was scythed down by Walker-Peters. Given that United were already down to 10 men after Casemiro's dismissal, Ten Hag took no chances and withdrew the youngster in added-on time after he was seen struggling to shake off the after effects of said tackle.
But the Dutchman was quick to play down fears over Garnacho's fitness in the immediate aftermath of Sunday's match when he insisted that he didn't think the winger's issue was "too bad".
Ten Hag said: "He was a little bit limping after the bad tackle. In the end they brought on another striker, a big and tall one [Paul Onuachu] and I don't want to go for risk, we were already downsized to 10 [men].
"I didn't want to go with players who were [just] 90 per cent. That's why I called him off but I think it is not too bad."
If Garnacho's injury does lead to an extended spell on the sidelines, then the youngster's season could be brought to a premature end. There are just under two months of the current campaign remaining with Manchester United still alive in both the FA Cup and the Europa League. The Red Devils ended a six-year trophy drought with victory in the Carabao Cup final last month.
