Why Raphael Varane missed Man Utd v Brentford

Raphael Varane was a shock omission from the Manchester United squad for Saturday’s Premier League encounter against Brentford.

The experienced defender has been ruled out with what the club have described as a ‘minor issue’, although it’s not clear if that is an injury or illness. The issue not believed to be a serious problem and Erik ten Hag said ahead of the game that Varane may have been able to start if the game had taken place in ‘two or three days’ time.

But it’s a worrying trend for Varane, whose involvement in matches is becoming less and less reliable. He missed three games earlier this season with a minor knock and only returned to the starting line-up two weeks ago for the Premier League encounter against Crystal Palace. The Frenchman managed just 34 appearances last term and suffered from three different injuries through the season, resulting in him missing 27 matches.

Varane’s absence adds to the growing list of defenders missing for United at present, along with Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw, Tyrell Malacia and Sergio Reguilon. The plethora of unavailable players meant Ten Hag had just four options to select from in his backline, with no defenders named on the bench.

Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans were named in the XI, along with Diogo Dalot. For Maguire, it’s a first Premier League start of the season, and just a second for Maguire.

Casemiro, Sofyan Amrabat, Mason Mount, Bruno Fernandes, Rasmus Hojlund and Marcus Rashford complete the starting XI for the Red Devils.