Nottingham Forest’s fresh injury update on star striker Chris Wood shows who Rúben Amorim must select when Manchester United face them on Tuesday evening.
After a two-week break for international fixtures, Rúben Amorim’s Manchester United return to Premier League action on Tuesday, 1 April, with a trip to Nottingham Forest.
United were in strong form before the pause, beating Real Sociedad home and away, cruising past Leicester City 3-0, and earning a point against Arsenal in a 1-1 draw.
Bruno Fernandes has been particularly influential, netting five goals and adding two assists in his last three matches under Amorim.
While the Forest clash provides an ideal chance to keep the momentum going, Amorim will also be preparing for a crucial run of games, including the Manchester Derby and a Europa League quarter-final tie with Olympique Lyonnais.
Forest issue Wood injury update
Earlier this week, Forest were dealt a blow as star striker Chris Wood sustained a hip injury while on international duty with New Zealand.
The 33-year-old then did not feature as Nuno Espírito Santo’s men defeated Brighton on penalties in the FA Cup quarter-final, with Forest playing 120 minutes on Saturday evening.
Speaking after the game, Nuno was asked if Wood would be able to play against United next week, to which he gave a coy but ultimately gloomy answer, rendering it unlikely that the frontman would start.
“Let’s wait and see. It is going to be day by day we have to assess him,” The Portuguese manager said. “It is all about the pain he has. It was a big impact on his hip and it is very painful.
“We have to assess him. We are gutted that Chris is not here with us. I cannot answer that. I don’t know, I’m not sure. It is going to be day by day.”
Amorim must start Yoro vs Forest
With Wood seemingly likely out of action against United, this means Nuno will almost certainly start Taiwo Awoniyi as Forest’s striker on Tuesday evening.
The Nigerian striker is known to be a strong and powerful athlete, meaning Amorim must look to start Leny Yoro when United travel to Nottingham.
Yoro has previously spoken about how he feels his anticipation is a highlight of his game, and when playing against forwards such as Awoniyi, that is a key skill that helps negate their physical presence.
Yoro returned to training earlier this week after missing recent fixtures against Sociedad and Leciester, and with Lisandro Martínez out, the 19-year-old is without a doubt the best option to play at left centre-back against Forest.
Make sure to follow UtdDistrict on X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok to never miss out on any of our Manchester United content. Our podcast, What the Devil?, is streamed live every Thursday at 12:30 pm (GMT) on the United View YouTube channel.