HARRY MAGUIRE left Villa Park in a plastic boot after being helped off the pitch by a club doctor.
The England defender was removed at half-time after he was handed a shock Manchester United start for Sunday’s all-important Premier League clash, which ended 0-0
Maguire’s knee looked to have locked during a Villa set piece on the brink of half-time.
The back of his sock was completely ripped, with a huge hole showing his full calf as keeper Andre Onana assisted him to the sidelines.
Maguire was holding his calf before he was helped off by three members of Man Utd’s medical staff after referee Robert Jones’ whistle.
And the Telegraph claims the England centre-back left Villa Park in a protective boot to leave Erik ten Hag sweating over his fitness.
Maguire’s counterpart Jonny Evans also looked to be struggling in the first half after a crunching challenge on Leon Bailey – but went onto win Man of the Match.
Maguire and Noussair Mazraoui were subsequently subbed at the interval, with Matthijs de Ligt and Victor Lindelof brought on as replacements.
Maguire also picked up a yellow card for leaning into Ollie Watkins’ face with his arm in the 36th minute and will now undergo tests to determine the extent of his problem.
The 31-year-old missed Euro 2024 amid ongoing issues with his calf.
By Graeme Bryce
ANDRE ONANA – 7
Guilty of sloppy distribution once or twice but his hands were safe enough and he did well to beat away a piledriver from Youri Tielemans to keep United on level terms.
NOUSSAIR MAZRAOUI – 6
Managed to contain Jaden Philogene comfortably enough in the first 45 minutes but failed to appear for the second half and was replaced by Victor Lindelof.
HARRY MAGUIRE – 6
Booked for a high forearm challenge on Ollie Watkins but his afternoon ended at half-time after he appeared to jar his knee defending a corner.
JONNY EVANS – 9
Handled Ollie Watkins well in the first 45 and showed all his experience to deal with the twin threat of Watkins and Jhon Duran for the final half hour. Rolled back the years with a five-star display to earn his Man of the Match rating.
DIOGO DALOT – 7
Sat in and rarely got forward but snuffed out the threat of Leon Bailey and was tidy enough. Crucial block to deny Philogene a stoppage time winner.
CHRISTIAN ERIKSEN – 7
Used all his experience to plug any gaps in United’s carefully constructed midfield. Dealt with the threat from Morgan Rogers well.
KOBBIE MAINOO – 7
Nothing flashy from the England midfielder who had his work cut out preventing Youri Tielemans carrying out his magic.
ALEJANDRO GARNACHO – 6
Fired in a first-half shot which Emi Martinez dealt with comfortably but shot hopelessly wide a couple of times after the break. Sloppy finishing let him down.
BRUNO FERNANDES – 8
United’s skipper only played after his red card against Spurs was overturned on appeal.
Kept his cool here to avoid a third red card in three games – came closest for United with a free kick which crashed off the Villa crossbar.
MARCUS RASHFORD – 7
Taken off at half-time in Oporto and taken off after 64 minutes to save himself a second yellow card here!
Looked United’s likeliest match-winner after forcing an early save from Martinez before bringing the best out in the Argentine World Cup winner with a sizzling effort which the ‘keeper tipped over. Booked for a foul on Cash.
RASMUS HOJLUND – 6
Put himself about and was involved in the clash which led to Ezri Konsa limping off. But lacked service and was replaced by Zirkzee just beyond the hour mark. Below par.
SUBS
MATTHIJS DE LIGT for Maguire (46 minutes) – 5 – Conceded a few fouls in dangerous areas. Still finding his feet.
VICTOR LINDELOF for Mazraoui (46 mins) – 6 – First appearance since March but fitted in well as a stand-in right-back. Booked for a foul on Morgan Rogers.
JOSHUA ZIRKZEE for Hojlund (64 mins) – 5 – Miles off the pace, failed to make any impact.
ANTONY for Rashford (64 mins) – 6 – Brought out the best in Emi Martinez with a curler which was heading for the top bin until the keeper plucked it out of mid-air.
CASEMIRO for Mainoo (85 mins) – 6 – Helped see out the match for United.
And Man Utd now face an anxious wait over their former captain, who scored a last-gasp equaliser for Ten Hag’s side in a 3-3 draw with Porto in the Europa League on Thursday.
Ten Hag is under mounting pressure to save his job following a nightmare start to the season.
SunSport reported this week that the Dutchman had two games to persuade Old Trafford chiefs of his ability.
But with Maguire off, Villa stepped up the intensity after a pretty tame first 45 minutes from both sides.
Marcus Rashford was lucky to somehow escape a second yellow for lunge in on Bailey shortly before he was hauled off in the 64th minute.
Bruno Fernandes came closest to scoring for the away side, with his powerful free-kick strike smacking off the crossbar inside 68 minutes.
But despite the obvious defensive personnel changes, the Red Devils defended valiantly – although both sides showed a real lack of quality going forward.
Ten Hag’s crunch clash ended goalless, with the Dutchman’s fate out of his hands for now as Man Utd sit 10 points behind leaders Liverpool in 14th.
