Manchester United suffered another injury on Saturday, but for one youngster, it might be a career-defining chance.
Erik ten Hag must believe he’s cursed at this point. As we approach the season’s most critical game, injury worries continue to pile up.
Once again, Manchester United’s defence has been hampered by injuries, and Harry Maguire is now the only senior centre-back available for the FA Cup semi-finals.
This comes as Fabrizio Romano confirmed on Saturday evening that Willy Kambwala had been ruled out due to injury.
Even so, Maguire had been a doubt for most of the week and had skipped training as a precaution.
With this in mind, Maguire needs a partner to face Coventry; might this be 18-year-old Louis Jackson’s debut?
Ten Hag has named teenage centre-back Louis Jackson to the squad to face Coventry, replacing Kambwala.
But he should go one step farther and name him to the starting lineup.
Jackson is a member of the fantastic U18 team, which just won the league championship, so he’ll be full of confidence.
In the same report that revealed Kambwala’s absence, it was alleged that Casemiro had been initially picked to start alongside Maguire, which should not have happened.
The prospect of Maguire and Casemiro teaming up is concerning, as United’s lack of mobility might be a major problem.
So having Jackson’s legs in there instead would be a massive advantage, and he’s a natural at the position.
Ten Hag should start him for another reason, though: history may repeat itself.
Ten Hag may replicate Manchester United history by starting Jackson.
If Jackson starts, it won’t be the first time he’s been called up on short notice for a big cup game.
Jackson was recruited into the U18 FA Youth Cup final in 2022 as a 16-year-old when Tyler Fredricson fell unwell on the day of the game.
Jackson moved in to replace him, and United won the title.
Ten Hag might repeat history by putting Jackson here instead of Casemiro, who could be even more of a danger than Jackson at center-back.
There is a strong argument for Jackson to start, and we’d love to see it, since it would be similar to Marcus Rashford’s debut years ago during an injury crisis.
Ten Hag must trust him and the kids since they are his sole assets, and they have yet to fail him.
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