Manchester United have revealed that Jonny Evans will be missing "for the next few weeks" with the injury that he suffered against Copenhagen in the Champions League last week.
The Northern Ireland international has recently been first pick alongside Harry Maguire in the middle of the Red Devils defence, and he was again given the nod over Raphael Varane for the contest with Copenhagen.
The experienced centre-back was forced off the field with a muscular problem in the early stages of the European contest, though, and Man United head coach Erik ten Hag said on Friday that the 35-year-old would be absent for the team's Premier League clash with Luton Town on Saturday.
"So we don't, in this moment, have a full assessment done. We didn't finish it, we don't have the details so far, but for tomorrow he's out," said the manager during his press conference.
Man United have now released a statement confirming that Evans will be on the sidelines "for the next few weeks" recovering from "a thigh strain".
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"Jonny Evans will be out of action for the next few weeks with injury," said the club on Friday night, via a statement on their official website.
"The Northern Ireland defender suffered a thigh strain in the first half of our Champions League game with FC Copenhagen in Denmark on Wednesday."
Evans retuned to Man United over the summer following his release from Leicester City, and he has made eight appearances for the club this season, including six outings in the Premier League.
The experienced defender has recently been picked ahead of Varane in the middle, but Ten Hag has played down suggestions of a rift with the ex-France international.
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"Absolutely not (a rift with Varane). As I said, it's tactical reasons why I choose these partnerships. I think Harry and Jonny did quite well," the Dutchman added on Friday.
"What I said, last year, Harry didn't play a lot. So, I was very happy with Rapha's performance and I have always been happy with his performance. But, in this moment, Harry is playing very good. There is internal competition.
"I think Rapha did very well in combination with Licha [Lisandro] Martinez, I think he was brilliant, and I can also see very good combination with Jonny Evans or Victor Lindelof, I think they are very good combinations.
"Harry Maguire is doing very well in this moment and I'm very happy with that. As I always said with Harry Maguire, he can do the job and now he is showing he is doing the job. Rapha Varane, I always played him, all the games when he was available, I played him because he was doing that well."
Varane continues to be heavily linked with a move away from Old Trafford, though, with various clubs from Saudi Arabia said to be considering attempting to sign him in 2024.
Matt Law
