Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has revealed that midfielder Paul Pogba will undergo a late fitness test ahead of his side's clash with Arsenal on New Year's Day.
The Frenchman, who has only recently returned from over two months out with an ankle injury, managed 45 minutes in the Boxing Day victory over Newcastle United but then did not travel with the squad to face Burnley on Saturday.
Speaking after the game (via the club's official website), Solskjaer suggested that Pogba's absence was down to a lack of match fitness, rather than a recurrence of the injury.
“He had 45 minutes but he’s been out for a while and he didn’t feel right,” said the manager.
“He reacted to that one so we’ll just have to take our time and get him ready for next time. When you’ve been out for such a while, it’s always going to take time to be 100%. He just needed another day probably of recovery.”
United will certainly be eager to welcome Pogba back permanently. The 26-year-old impressed during his brief return against Watford, and United don't exactly have too many options to replace him right now.
First-choice midfield partner Scott McTominay is also out with a knee injury, but Solskjaer was far less optimistic about the young Scot's chances of a swift return.
“Yeah we’ve looked at him, but we haven’t done the full scan yet. Over the weekend, we’ll know more. It didn’t look good but we hope it’s going to heal quickly," he said.
“I wouldn’t expect Scott to be back within a few weeks, no. Not the next couple of weeks, I don’t think we’ll see him. So it’ll be more than that. But he’s always proved before that give him three weeks and he’s back in two. I don’t know, if it’s three or four weeks. It might be something like this, but we’ve just got to find a way through it."
The 2-0 victory over Burnley saw United climb up to fifth in the Premier League table, and they will be eager to use that as momentum for their trip to the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday.
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Source : 90min