Manchester United’s Shaw suffers double leg fracture in loss to PSV
Luke Shaw looks unlikely to play again this season after suffering a double leg fracture in Manchester United’s Champions League match at PSV Eindhoven.
With the score at 0-0, the Manchester United left back was taken out with a sliding tackle by Hector Moreno in the 15th minute of the group stage match in Holland. Replays showed Moreno had swept both of Shaw’s feet from underneath him and his right foot lay at an angle, which instantly indicated a severe break.
He stayed down for eight minutes of treatment before being carried off on a stretcher while receiving oxygen. Louis van Gaal looked upset at seeing the 20-year-old being carried off on a stretcher. The United manager went over to the defender and gave him a pat on the shoulder as he was carried down the tunnel. He was then taken to hospital. Both sets of fans applauded as Shaw left the field.
Moreno was not penalized for the tackle, which happened in the PSV penalty area. Moreno went on to score PSV’s equalizer as the Dutch side recovered from Memphis Depay’s goal to claim a 2-1 win and make it a thoroughly miserable return to the Champions League proper for United.
United confirmed after the game that Shaw had suffered a double leg fracture. Early estimates suggest the player will spend around a year on the sidelines and will miss the European Championships for England after seemingly making the left-back slot his own in Roy Hodgson’s side.
A visibly shocked United manager Van Gaal said in his press conference after the game: “He is in hospital. He will be transferred later and will be operated on in Manchester. It is awful. The boy comes to Manchester at 18 and it is difficult for him. Then in his second season, he is fantastic… and then that happens like this. I’ve not been able to speak to him yet. He was taking oxygen and was crying.”
The player will undergo surgery later this week. Van Gaal was clearly unhappy with the challenge, but refused to condemn the Mexican defender, who played for him at AZ. “If I say it is a penalty and a red card I am a bad loser, every word is interpreted in the wrong way,” he said. “But it was a very bad tackle with two legs.”
PSV coach Phillip Cocu defended Moreno. “The intention was not to injure the opponent,” the former Barcelona player, who played for van Gaal at Camp Nou, told reporters following his side's shock win in Eindhoven.
Despite fears the player faces around a year out, Van Gaal hopes that road to recovery is not a long one. “I am not a doctor so I cannot say that, but when you have a double fracture it is I think until six months,” he added. “It is about how it develops. You can never say that in advance. He will not play in the group phase I think. I hope he can play again this season.”
England manager Hodgson already has major injury concerns. Jack Wilshere, Jordan Henderson, Danny Welbeck, Daniel Sturridge, Fraser Forster and Ben Foster all missed the last international double-header with long-term injuries.
Marcos Rojo, who replaced Shaw at the Philips Stadion, is likely to be a long-term replacement for Shaw at United this season. Shaw’s teammate Adnan Januzaj, currently on loan at Borussia Dortmund, wrote on Twitter: “Horrible to see what happened … I wish u all the best my brother and stay strong you will comeback even stronger … @LukeShaw23”
Shaw himself took to Twitter, as many well-wishers sent him notes of support. He wrote: “Thank you everyone for your messages , words can’t describe how gutted I am , my road to recovery starts now, I will come back stronger.”
His former club Southampton told Shaw to “come back stronger”, to which he replied: “thank you , you don’t know how much you as a club mean to me , thank you so much I really appreciate it.”
