adminUnited beat Wigan 5-0 on Monday, but that win came at a price with Jonny Evans going off at half-time with a calf injury leaving Evra to team up with Michael Carrick in central defence.
Currently, United have 11 men on the treatment table and while manager Alex Ferguson is hopeful youngsters Chris Smalling and Phil Jones will have recovered from illness in time to face Blackburn on New Year’s Eve, Evra knows the present situation is unsustainable.
“I am a little bit worried because we need everyone if we are going to win the league,” said the France international.
“It is starting to get annoying.
“It is not the first year we got so many injuries. Two years ago I played with Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher at the back.
“The most important thing is that we won but I hope everyone gets fit because Blackburn is another big game and we need all the defenders.”
Midfielder Park Ji-sung echoed Evra’s concerns.
“I have never known anything like it,” said the South Korean.
“Hopefully we will get our defenders back pretty quickly because we are coming up to some very important games.
“We have to deal with it and get through this period.”
Of those who missed out Monday, Ferguson has highest hopes of Jones and Smalling making a successful recovery from illness.
United have not put a timescale on Rio Ferdinand’s absence with a back injury, while Evans looks set to miss a couple of weeks with the calf injury that forced him off at half-time during the Wigan win.
Meanwhile Ferguson believes Manchester United will be ideally placed to retain their Premier League title if they reach New Year’s Day alongside Manchester City at the top of the table.
Ferguson, who turns 70 on New Year’s Eve when his team entertain struggling Blackburn, saw United draw level with City on points after an emphatic 5-0 victory over Wigan at Old Trafford on Boxing Day.
It marked a remarkable recovery from United who, as recently as December 10, trailed City by five points and 17 goals prior to a 4-1 victory over Wolves.
Now, following consecutive 5-0 victories, all that separates United from the current league leaders are five goals in the goal difference column — the margin of defeat which United suffered at the hands of City in their historic 6-1 home loss to Roberto Mancini’s side in October.
“As I say, it’s a long season,” said Ferguson. “If we get to New Year’s Day top, or joint top with City, then I will be happy.
“I’ve been saying for a few weeks that somebody was going to suffer against us and we’ve really hit good form now and got a goal threat from all departments.
“The clean sheet was a good part of the game for us and the consistency of the team is very good now.
“But the injuries are mounting up for us now — Phil Jones was down ill, Chris Smalling was ill, Rio Ferdinand called off with a back injury and Jonny Evans came off injured at halftime. We’re getting our fair share.”
Those injuries will severely test United, with Ferguson confirming that the calf strain will keep Evans on the sidelines for two weeks.
“We will just have to wait and see,” added Ferguson, with an eye on his team selection for the Blackburn game. “I’m hoping Smalling and Jones will recover. That will make a difference.”
A single point against Blackburn will take United to solitary ownership of first place at the top of the table and place intense pressure on City, who visit Sunderland 24 hours later on New Year’s Day.
However, for all their defensive injury concerns, there is no doubt that United seem to have found the answer to their goal-scoring problems with Bulgarian forward Dimitar Berbatov, starting just his second league game of the season, claiming a hat-trick against Wigan.
Berbatov, joint leading scorer in the Premier League last season with City’s Carlos Tevez, now has four goals to his name this term and Ferguson said: “It was the right game for him.” — Supersport.
Online Reporter