Missing out on Manchester United’s 1-0 loss to Newcastle at the weekend, Victor Lindelöf saw Axel Tuanzebe start in his stead.
Many thought it was just a sign the youngster had overtaken the Sweden international in the pecking order, but the centre-back was simply injured, picking up a back problem in the Thursday game against AZ Alkmaar.
Despite this, he was called up to his national team for the international break, and Monday saw the player explain he was ‘hopeful’ he could play in the upcoming two games against Malta and Spain.
Fast forward to Wednesday, and Lindelöf has once again updated the Swedish media about his situation, speaking to TV4, relayed by Fötbollskanalen.
He said: “It happened on Thursday. I had a game and it seized up. I haven’t been able to train or take part in the last club game, so that’s it, but it gets better and better every day. I get good treatment here and good help with the national team”.
Lindelöf then revealed this is an issue he has been aware of for most of his life, explaining he had ‘very big problems’ with his back when he was younger, but that they had been ‘good’ in recent years, recalling the last issue being three years ago.
He insisted: “I know what it is. I know my body. Do I play? It’s up to Janne [Andersson] and obviously up to my body. If I feel it’s holding up, I want to play both matches if Janne wants it. We simply have to see and take it day by day on how my body feels.
“Today, I went on the pitch a bit, tested different movements with the ball and such. We’ll see how it feels when I wake up tomorrow and if there’s any difference, but hopefully I can join the team tomorrow, but we’ll see”.
Sweden play Malta on October 12th and Spain on October 15th, so there’s still time for everything to be sorted in time, but even if there’s the slightest risk of the back issue worsening, it’s fair to say Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and the Manchester United medical staff will want him to sit out at least one of the fixtures.
