It would be safe to assume that the 3-1 win over Swansea City would have lifted a lot of pressure off manager Jose Mourinho. Manchester United secured their first win in four games to finally go into the international break in a much more relaxed manner. However, Mourinho did not appear relaxed prior to the game against the Swans. The victory was achieved with largely a makeshift defence, as defenders Chris Smalling and Luke Shaw were unavailable for the game.
Mourinho has recently been questioning his players with regard to attitude, commitment, and, perhaps, even quality. The Portuguese rarely goes on such an onslaught of his own players and it is a testament to the problems at United right now. José could have underplayed the absence of Smalling and Shaw after the game, as it was a positive result for the team after a long time. Yet, he chose to once again question the players – this time more directly – and asking for players to play through the pain barrier.
The consensus would have been that Smalling and Shaw did not elect to be part of the game due to minor injuries. However, Sky Sports has confirmed that Smalling faces up to 4 weeks on the sidelines after suffering a broken toe. It is quite a serious injury, and Mourinho may be left red-faced with his latest comments. Shaw is also unavailable with the England team that plays in a crucial World Cup 2018 qualifier against Scotland.
The latest injury news could not have been more disastrous for United, as the club are already dealing without Eric Bailly. The summer signing is set to be ruled out until Christmas after suffering a major knee injury during the 4-0 mauling at the hands of Chelsea. Right back Antonio Valencia recently underwent a surgery on a fractured arm.
The situation certainly does not look good for United, but they at least welcomed back Phil Jones to the first-team. After having missed the start of the season, the England international made a comeback to the league team with a fine performance against Swansea. He was partnered by Marcos Rojo in the centre of the park, while forgotten man Matteo Darmian played at left back. Winger Ashley Young substituted the regular right back Valencia.
It is certainly not ideal at the back for United, but they just about managed to keep out a Swansea team extremely low on confidence. The same cannot be said of the next opponents for United – Arsenal. Armed with an arsenal of goal scorers, the likes of Olivier Giroud, Mesut Ozil, and Theo Walcott will be quite a handful. They arrive at Old Trafford after having not suffered a defeat since the opening day of the campaign.
