15 January 2024 , 10:26
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Luke Shaw was due to feature for Manchester United in their clash with Tottenham - only to suffer another injury setback.
The 28-year-old was set to start at left-back but pulled out in the eleventh hour with a fitness concern, leaving Aaron Wan-Bissaka to fill in on the left side of defence for the first time in his career. Shaw missed 10 straight Premier League games earlier this season due to injury.
He's been sidelined once again, not featuring since the loss at West Ham on December 23. Shaw is closing in on a first-team return, but the 2-2 draw with the north Londoners proved to be too soon for the England international.
Erik ten Hag explained his thinking, with Diogo Dalot remaining on the right and Wan-Bissaka shifting out to an unknown position. He said: "On Monday against Wigan, he played for a part of it. We expected Luke Shaw, we trained with Luke Shaw in preparation for this game, but this morning he dropped out, not fit enough to start.
"So to change then back, what we trained, what was our gameplan would have been too much so we decided to put Azza on the left and keep Diogo on the right side.”
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Shaw is one of the more experience defenders in United's first-team, but has been unable to enjoy a string of games for several weeks. Ten Hag did, however, welcome back Lisandro Martinez - his World Cup winning centre-half who has been missing for four months due to a foot injury.
Aaron Wan Bissaka filled in at left-backThe former Ajax defender, signed last summer, was crucial in his debut season and he proved the doubters wrong. Martinez thanked the Old Trafford crowd for his reception: "Proud of the reception I got from the fans, I really love you. Not the result we wanted, but we battled hard until the end. We’ll work together for more!’"
Ten Hag is confident that the return of Martinez, which should soon be followed by Shaw, can help United find some form after a difficult year.
The Dutch coach said: "We are improving and we’ve seen a glimpse of the future with Garnacho, Mainoo, Hojlund of course. I’m very pleased players are returning, like Martinez, Casemiro and Shaw. I’m sure we’ll have a strong side.”