Eric Bailly has battled with injuries his entire Manchester United career, and that struggle looks to continue as the center-back appears to have suffered another serious knee problem.
After seeing just 10 minutes on the field as a halftime substitute in Manchester United’s 2-1 win over Tottenham in Shanghai, Bailly was stretchered off and was seen leaving the stadium on crutches. With Manchester United returning home after the match, Bailly was pictured in a wheelchair with a brace around his left knee.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer hinted after the match that Bailly may yet again see the sidelines for a long spell. “We’ve just got to do some scans,” the Manchester United boss said after the match. “It doesn’t look great but let’s see how it goes.”
Bailly joined Manchester United in the summer of 2016, but in his three years at Old Trafford he has made just 74 appearances across all competitions, including 50 in league play. He made 25 Premier League appearances his first season with the Red Devils but missed all of November with a slight knee injury. The 25-year-old saw his top flight appearances drop to 13 in 2017/18 thanks to an ankle injury that left him sidelined for three months, and that number dropped to 12 last season with a knee injury late in the campaign that kept him out of the Africa Cup of Nations this summer.
Manchester United has a plethora of central defenders in the squad to replace Bailly, but Solsjkaer has gunned for improvements at the position nonetheless. Bailly’s injury only strengthen’s Leicester City’s negotiating position as they look to push the price for Harry Maguire higher and higher. English tabloids reported that Bailly’s place in the Manchester United squad was already tenuous before the injury, and this will only add to his frustrations.
