Greenwood, has scored twice for the first-team this season and appeared as a substitute in the dismal defeat by Newcastle at the weekend, was due to link up with England’s Under-21 side for the second time after his maiden call up last month.
But United have confirmed a back injury means Greenwood won’t feature in the upcoming friendly against Slovenia or the Under-21 European Championship qualifier against Austria.
Instead, Greenwood will remain at United’s Carrington training base to work on his recovery and fitness ahead of the huge Premier League clash with league leaders and fierce rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford when domestic football resumes in just under two weeks’ time.
The teenager joins a lengthy list of United casualties, with Diogo Dalot also among the latest to suffer an injury to further weaken a squad that was already thin on options.
Mason Greenwood has withdrawn from the @England U21s squad due to injury. #MUFC
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 7, 2019
Victor Lindelof was ruled out ahead of the Newcastle game with a back issue, which manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer blamed on last week’s artificial pitch in the Netherlands, while Paul Pogba, Anthony Martial, Jesse Lingard, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Phil Jones, Eric Bailly and Timothy Fosu-Mensah were all already out of action.
Whether Greenwood will be fit and available to play any part against Liverpool on 20 October remains unclear, but France national team coach Didier Deschamps cast doubt on Pogba’s availability for the game after claiming his ankle problem will keep him out for three weeks.
After a lacklustre performance saw United slump to a 1-0 loss at Newcastle on Sunday, fans will at least hope for a more determined display when Liverpool visit Old Trafford.
Marcus Rashford has taken to social media in the wake of the defeat to assure supporters that the players are aware of the responsibilities and that fans ‘deserve better’.
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Source : 90min