Sir Alex Ferguson concerned over Owen Hargreaves’ injury
Manchester United’s manager Sir Alex Ferguson has expressed his concerns over the physical condition of his midfielder Owen Hargreaves.
Owen made his long awaited return to 1st team action in Manchester United’s home match against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the English Premier League, but could only last 5 minutes before tearing his hamstring muscle.
Hargreaves had been recuperating his tendinitis injury for about 18 months, and his return to the football pitch was not so fortunate.
The England international is currently receiving therapy in Germany and trying to recover from his injury.
Ferguson, while commenting on the player’s condition said, “He has not played for over two years so we would have to be super-optimistic to think everything in the garden was rosy about him making comebacks. What we are trying
to do is help the lad. That in itself is our biggest challenge. We want to help the lad try to get back to a level where he can still play football."
The 68-year-old master tactician added, “This hamstring injury is a real kick in the teeth. He was doing so well in training before the Wolves game. He was absolutely superb. There were no qualms whatsoever about putting him in,
even though he had only trained for nine days. We were confident enough to play him but unfortunately it has proved to be a disappointment for us. If he had realised early enough and come off before he had done any more damage, it could have been three to
four weeks. But it is a complete tear. He has to fight it. There is no other way."
The 29-year-old made his £18 million move to Old Trafford from German side Bayern Munich in 2007 and started his United career on a high note. Hargreaves was an instrumental figure in the Red Devils’ 2008 double winning season,
in which they won the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League.
The England international’s absence has been a huge blow for Ferguson this season and United’s midfielders have not been impressive in his absence. With the likes of experienced campaigners such as Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes close
to retiring, the duo of Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher have been unable to provide the stability and creativity in the centre of the park.
Fergie is expected to recruit a central midfielder in this season’s January transfer window and add strength to his midfield department.
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