Report: Antonio Valenica apparently leaves Carrington on crutches

According to a report by the Daily Mail, Manchester United winger Antonio Valencia was seen leaving Carrington -- the club's training ground -- on crutches. He apparently was in a protective boot and the injury is thought to have occurred when he won the deciding penalty on Sunday at Anfield versus Liverpool FC. If true, this would obviously be a big blow and this news comes just hours after it was revealed that captain Nemanja Vidic would be out for eight weeks due to an operation on his right meniscus.

With Ashley Young injured, that leaves Nani -- and perhaps Ryan Giggs -- as the squad's only available natural wingers. Starting with Wednesday night's Capital One Cup tie with Newcastle United, Sir Alex Ferguson's side faces a congested fixture list in the next few weeks -- four matches in a 12-day span -- prior to the October international break. If Valencia is unavailable during this time, expect Nani to be first-choice on the right flank for Premier League and UEFA Champions League matches while Giggs and Danny Welbeck will be options out wide to the left. Young may return before the international break and he'd obviously be an option out there too as will Wayne Rooney when he soon returns from injury. Shinji Kagawa also plays out on the left for Japan and he'd be possible as well.