Manchester United confirm major injury news as defender undergoes surgery

Manchester United have confirmed Leny Yoro has successfully undergone surgery on his broken metatarsal and is set to be out for around three months.

The Frenchman, who arrived this summer from Lille in a deal with up to £59m, will therefore not be available until around November and will definitely miss Premier League matches against Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa in that time.

Yoro suffered the injury in a pre-season friendly against Arsenal on 28 July - along with Rasmus Hojlund - and it’s a major blow for Erik ten Hag’s plans for the new season. The United boss regularly pointed to the club’s injury record last term - which was the worst in the league - as the reason behind the Red Devils’ poor form.

He referred to this season as ‘survival of the fittest’ less than 24 hours before Yoro and Hojlund picked up their respective injuries.

The former’s absence means Harry Maguire is likely to be handed first-team opportunities in the coming weeks, assuming he is fit. The ex-Leicester City missed last weekend’s friendly loss to Liverpool with a knock, while Victor Lindelof, Jonny Evans and Will Fish all had to be replaced with various issues during the game.

It’s unclear who will play at the heart of defence on Saturday in the Community Shield, with Lisandro Martinez only returning to pre-season today (Monday). United are still in the market for a centre-back and Matthijs de Ligt remains a player the club are hoping to sign.

As for Yoro, the teenager has already begun his rehabilitation, but fans will hope his injury does not stunt his progression in his first year at Old Trafford.

After playing Manchester City this weekend, United begin the Premier League campaign at home to Fulham on Friday 16 August.