Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney is set to return to a midfield role when his side face league leaders Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening, according to Mail Online.
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The Red Devils are light in that area of the pitch following injuries to Michael Carrick and Daley Blind sustained in the Manchester derby last weekend, while Phil Jones, who has played in midfield for club and country, has also been ruled out of the game.
Manager Louis van Gaal has hinted that he may have no other choice than to turn to his captain to fill the void that will be left by the injured midfield duo:
“We have four injuries who played the last match so that’s not so good for us,” he told reporters ahead of the game (via Mail Online)
“We had very good hope that we should recover two of the four but it’s not like that. Carrick is out and Rojo is out, but also Blind and Jones.”
“Blind and Carrick can play the midfield holding position so I don’t have any other player, or Wayne Rooney can play in the position,” he added.
Rooney had a stint as a central midfielder earlier in the campaign and played that role to mixed effect.
He has looked back to his best since being deployed as a central striker, and has linked up well with Marouane Fellaini and Juan Mata.
News of the injuries is a hammer blow to United’s hopes of getting something from the Bridge, as they go into the game on the back of six straight victories in the league and have been playing some of their best football all season in recent weeks.