De Gea joins Man United’s injury list during pre-match warm-up

Louis van Gaal’s injury woes were compounded ahead of tonight’s shock 2-1 defeat to Midtylland with the news that Spanish shot-stopper David De Gea suffered enough discomfort during his warm up to require medical attention. While the status of the former Atlético Madrid keeper’s injury has not yet been confirmed, sources in England point to a problem with his ankle. Sergio Romero’s last-minute replacement for didn’t have the desired effect as the Red Devils squandered a 0-1 lead against the Danish minnows.

In the build-up to the match Van Gaal highlighted the injuries problems currently plaguing his squad: “We have 13 players out injured and, when you analyse them, they are all contact injuries, so it is all down to bad luck. I have never had that amount of players injured before. When you realise that they are only contact injuries - only Marouane Fellaini maybe has a muscle problem, the rest have contact injuries - it's unbelievable that we are very unlucky." The Dutch tactician now has 14 players on the recovery table and will have to string a makeshift starting line-up together for Monday’s FA Cup fifth round tie against Shrewsbury Town, who will be rubbing their hands together at the prospect of facing such a depleted United team.