Man Utd's Harry Maguire To Miss FA Cup Final Against Man City Due To Injury

Manchester United defender Harry Maguire will miss Saturday's FA Cup final against Manchester City, confirmed Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag. Maguire has been sidelined since suffering a muscle injury in training earlier in May, with an estimated recovery timeframe of around three weeks. This injury meant he faced significant challenges to make Saturday's game at Wembley Stadium, though he was included in England's preliminary Euro 2024 squad on Tuesday.

At Thursday's pre-match press conference, Ten Hag confirmed Maguire's unavailability but mentioned that Victor Lindelof, Mason Mount, and Anthony Martial are in contention after being seen in training. "Harry Maguire is unavailable but the rest, all the players you mentioned, I think they are available," said the Dutchman when asked for a team news update. "We have our final training tomorrow and then we have final decisions to make. But, as I oversee it now, it looks good."

When asked if Maguire's chances of featuring at the Euros were in doubt, Ten Hag responded, "I don't think so. It's just he doesn't make it [the final]. It didn't heal as we expected." Fellow centre-backs Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane are expected to be available, with Varane set to leave United on a free transfer after the final.

United have lost 19 games and conceded 84 goals in all competitions this season. They last lost 20 in a campaign in 1973-74 (22) and last conceded more than 84 goals in 1963-64 (89). Ten Hag's position has been under scrutiny throughout their challenging campaign, with reports on Thursday suggesting Ipswich Town's Kieran McKenna was a target for the Jim Ratcliffe regime.

Despite the difficulties, Ten Hag remains focused on winning trophies. "It's all about trophies," he said. "We have a huge opportunity to win a trophy. In the last 10 years, there were not many trophies in this club but we have an opportunity to win two trophies in two years."

Manchester United (@ManUtd) May 23, 2024