Raphael Varane ruled out for weeks with injury ahead of Manchester United trip to Arsenal in blow to Erik ten Hag

Manchester United have been dealt yet another injury blow with Raphael Varane facing several weeks out.

The French centre-back was withdrawn at half-time during United’s 3-2 win against Nottingham Forest on Saturday, and the club have now confirmed that he will be absent for a "few weeks".

United play Arsenal on Sunday, September 3 and then Brighton on September 16 following the international break.

The nature of Varane's injury is unclear, but according to BBC Sport, club sources have played down the severity of the issue amid rumours Varane could be unavailable for six weeks.

Varane is the latest Man Utd player sidelined with injury, with Mason Mount ruled out until after the September international break and fears that Luke Shaw could miss two months of action.

Varane has been impacted by injuries since he joined the club from Real Madrid in 2021. Over the past two years the 30-year-old has made 66 appearances for United but has missed 34 matches through injury.

The news seems to make it likely that Harry Maguire will not leave the club before the transfer window closes on Friday night.

Maguire was expected to leave United this summer, and despite the defender rejecting a move to West Ham earlier this month, there was a belief he could still leave before Friday’s deadline.

The England centre-back struggled for minutes and form under Erik ten Hag last season and was stripped of the club’s captaincy by the Dutch coach in July.

However, Varane’s injury means that Lisandro Martinez, Victor Lindelof and Maguire are the only fit senior centre-backs at Ten Hag’s disposal.

Martinez is a left-sided centre-back, meaning only Lindelof and Maguire can cover for Varane.

Given the circumstances, it’s likely that former United defender Jonny Evans’ temporary contract at Old Trafford will be made a permanent one.

United are still reportedly trying to sign a left-back and midfielder before the window closes, with Chelsea full-back Marc Cucurella and Fiorentina midfielder Sofyan Amrabat linked.

There has been no talk of the Red Devils entering the market for a new starting-quality central defender.

TNT Sports is available across all major TV platforms, offering a line-up of up to four TV channels (TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports 2, TNT Sports 3, TNT Sports 4), and up to six digital or red-button channels (TNT Sports 5 to 10), and TNT Sports Ultimate plus TNT Sports Box Office HD.

Sheffield United v Everton will be live on TNT Sports 1 from 12.00 BST on Saturday, 19 August.

You can subscribe to TNT Sports through discovery+, BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media.

--

TNT Sports presents the premium live sports rights previously carried by BT Sport including the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League, Gallagher Premiership Rugby, Heineken Champions Cup, EPCR Challenge Cup, MotoGP, Cricket, UFC, Boxing and WWE. The streaming home for TNT Sports in the UK is discovery+ where fans can enjoy a subscription that includes TNT Sports, Eurosport and entertainment in one destination. You can also watch TNT Sports through BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media