Man Utd player could miss Leicester City and Arsenal games because of Premier League rule

Manchester United have a host of injury problems to contend with ahead of a busy period before the international break. The Red Devils travel to a resurgent Everton on Saturday afternoon before a midweek game at home against relegation-threated Ipswich Town the following Wednesday.

An FA Cup clash with Fulham awaits on March 2 before Arsenal make the trip to Old Trafford a week later. In their final game before the March international break, United travel to Leicester City.

Lisandro Martinez and Amad Diallo have both been ruled out for the remainder of the season while midfielder Kobbie Mainoo is not set to be available until after the international break. Manuel Ugarte and Toby Collyer were both ruled out of Sunday’s 1-0 loss at Tottenham Hotspur but neither player is expected to spend long on the sidelines. Christian Eriksen would have been in the squad in North London but was ill.

Ugarte close to two-game ban

Ugarte has picked up eight yellow cards this season and is just two more cautions away from a two-game suspension. Premier League rules state that any player booked 10 times within a clubs opening 32 games will be suspended for two matches.

It means that if Ugarte is fit enough to feature against Everton and Ipswich, a yellow card in each game would rule him out of matches with Arsenal and Leicester City. Suspensions relating to an accumulation of bookings do not carry over into other competitions so he could still be in the side to play Fulham. If he avoids a yellow card against Everton, he then needs to avoid being cautioned against Ipswich and Arsenal. The slate will only be wiped clean after United's 32nd Premier League game, which is against Newcastle United on April 12. If he hits 10 bookings at any time during the club’s next seven league games, he will be forced to serve a ban.

Ugarte’s recent disciplinary record

Ugarte has been booked in four of his last five games in all competitions, a record he will need to quickly clean up in order to steer clear of a suspension. He was booked in the 3-1 home loss to Brighton, the 2-0 defeat at the hands of Crystal Palace and the victory over Leicester in the FA Cup - although that booking will not count towards his Premier League total.

Red Devils boss Ruben Amorim will be keen to keep the player available as he continues to contend with injury problems at Old Trafford. Speaking about his injured players after the loss to Tottenham, the United boss said: “It’s hard to know [when they will be back]. Let’s wait a few more days. I think Leny and Chris, they were sick, so they will recover. Of course, Chris has the heart situation so we have to be careful with that. It’s nothing about the heart, but the heart-rate has to be controlled because he has a fever. So I think we will recover them, the other guys, I think Kobbie is out, Amad is out for sure, I think, until the end of the season.”