The season is only three weeks old, and Manchester United are already battling injury lay-offs in key positions.
Erik Ten Hag's side have made a stuttering start to the season, picking up a win in nervy fashion on the opening day against Wolves before losing out to Spurs after another poor performance in North London.
Luke Shaw was ruled out through injury after that Spurs defeat, having been one of United's strongest performers of last season at left-back. With backup left-back Tyrrell Malacia also injured, Diogo Dalot deputised down the left against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
Dalot's performance was nervy at best, with the Portuguese full-back struggling out of position as United fought back from an early 2-0 deficit to win 3-2 at Old Trafford.
The injury lay-off for Luke Shaw now appears as though it will be much longer than initially forecast, with the Manchester Evening News reporting that the Englishman could be out for up to two months with a muscle injury.
Reports from Sky Sports suggest that United may raid rivals Chelsea for an out-of-favour player to fill the gap in the squad left by Shaw's injury.
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Report: Manchester United exploring move for Marc Cucurella
Sky Sports reported on Sunday that Manchester United are "tentatively" exploring a loan deal for Chelsea left-back Marc Cucurella, as a stop gap with Luke Shaw and Tyrrell Malacia set for a period on the sidelines.
Cucurella only joined Chelsea from Brighton last summer, and was a first-team regular until picking up an injury late in April. The Spaniard has since fallen out of favour under new manager Mauricio Pochettino, with Ben Chilwell preferred at left-back for the first three games of the season and Cucurella failing to chalk up a single minute of Premier League football thus far.
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It is widely expected that Manchester United will bring in a left-back, with Erik Ten Hag saying as much during his Friday press conference, in which he said that United would look for "the right player" in the market.
United do however have a highly rated prospect available for selection should they decide against a move, with young Spanish left-back Alvaro Fernandez on the bench for Saturday's win against Forest.
Fernandez started in United's pre-season friendly against Athletic Bilbao in Dublin, and impressed in a 1-1 draw. The 20-year-old spent last season on loan at Preston North End, making 39 Championship appearances.
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