Manchester United are in a defensive injury crisis heading into their clash with Nottingham Forest but the Red Devils academy could be set to help dig them out of a hole once more.
Erik ten Hag is without key defensive duo Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane for this weekend’s trip to the City Ground. The Argentine has been ruled out for the remainder of the season after injuring his metatarsal in Thursday evening’s draw with Sevilla.
He will be joined on the sidelines by Varane who is set to be ruled out for a few weeks after being withdrawn against the Spanish side at half-time. Their respective injuries have left United boss Ten Hag with a problem to solve at centre-back.
Luke Shaw - a conventional left-back - has only just returned from injury and will face a late fitness test to determine his involvement this weekend. The natural pairing would likely be captain Harry Maguire, despite his difficult outing against Sevilla, alongside Victor Lindelof.
Given the talent factory at their disposal, the Red Devils could potentially turn to their academy for a number of surprise options to provide cover on the bench. Teden Mengi - who has made two appearances for the Red Devils so far - could be recalled to the first-team fold.
The 20-year-old has experience of senior football following loan stints with Birmingham and Derby, whilst former Man Utd boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was a big fan. Speaking during his time at Old Trafford, the Norwegian said of Mengi: "You’ve got to make sure he’s ready for it, you see examples of Ajax, who play in a different league, but Matthijs de Ligt... they made him captain when he was 18.
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“You can see something special in them. Teden’s got something special in him. It’s about picking the right moment to give him a chance."
Since then, the young defender has been suffering with an injury that he picked up during United’s mid-season friendly with Real Betis. He has yet to make his return to any sort of competitive action, which could count him out to be called on over the coming weeks.
Another intriguing option could be fellow academy graduate Bjorn Hardley. The 20-year-old Dutchman has been a key player for the Red Devils’ U23 side throughout the campaign, with his form being good enough to earn senior recognition.
Ten Hag called the young defender to train with the first-team on Friday alongside Lindelof so he might be worthy of a spot in the squad for the trip to Nottingham.
