Raphael Varane in doubt for Leicester City

Raphael Varane is in doubt to start in Manchester United’s return to Premier League action against Leicester City on Saturday. The newly arrived centre back suffered a knock with France in their UEFA Nation’s League Final win over Spain on Sunday, and though he has yet to be examined by the club’s medical staff the early evaluation is not great for United’s needs for availability in the immediate future.

United will already be without Fred and Edinson Cavani against Leicester, as the pair will need to quarantine before returning to the squad after their respective national team fixtures in CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying. Club captain Harry Maguire is a doubt as well, and has not featured for United since his injury suffered against Aston Villa last month.

Maguire is back in training, but had to miss international duty with England due to his injury. While both he and Varane are not expected to miss extended periods of action, their short term injuries could still have a big effect on the rest of the season. United jump right back into Premier League and UEFA Champions League action after the current international fixture period, and face big tests against Atalanta (x2), Liverpool, and Tottenham Hotspurs over the next few weeks. Victor Lindelof is a very capable defender with the right partner, but the current options for partnership are Eric Bailly, who hasn’t played well in two seasons, and Phil Jones, who hasn’t played at all in two seasons.

Solskjaer has a lot to figure out as is, and now the absence of his starting centre back pair will only make matters more difficult.