Manchester United confirms knee injury for Rooney; will reportedly miss 2 months
Manchester United has been rocked with a massive injury blow as captain Wayne Rooney could reportedly miss up to two months with a knee injury, according to a report in the Telegraph.
While manager Louis van Gaal was unwilling to disclose how long Rooney will be out, the injury, which is believed to involve ligament damage to his knee, is the reason Rooney was forced to miss United's flight to Denmark ahead of the team's Europa League encounter with FC Midtjylland.
Louis van Gaal to #MUTV: "We have 13 players injured and Wayne Rooney is one of them." #mufc
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) February 17, 2016
More on Rooney from the boss: "You can never say [how long he could be out for]. He has a knee problem so we must wait and see." #MUTV #mufc
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) February 17, 2016
It's unclear when Rooney sustained damaged ligaments in his knee, considering he played in United's 2-1 loss to Sunderland without any clear indication he was suffering from an injury.
There's also concerns about his status on the England national team and if Rooney will be fully fit in time for this summer's European Championship in France.
Wouldn't be a tournament year without a Rooney injury scare.
— Jacob Steinberg (@JacobSteinberg) February 17, 2016
Matches against Arsenal, Manchester City, and Tottenham are just a few of the important Premier League fixtures Rooney is expected to miss.
Van Gaal added that Rooney's stubborn attitude may have contributed to the injury as he suggested his captain may have hid the injury from the team's medical staff.
"That's also typical Wayne," Van Gaal said. "He's a guy who wants to go until the end and if he is feeling pain, he doesn't want to go away, and certainly when you are drawing a match because he wants to win.
"That's a fantastic attitude but also it's bad for his body. You do not know when it happened, so that's the difficulty."