Kamara: Shaw’s injury spells uncertain times for Man Utd and England

First and foremost I want to wish Luke Shaw all the best in his recovery from a horrific broken leg in midweek. While it is terrible luck for him on a personal level it could spell the start of an uncertain period for both Manchester United and England.

When he went off on Wednesday I was slightly surprised by the decision Louis van Gaal came to.

Marcus Rojo was the obvious man to bring on in the situation but to then play him centrally and force Daley Blind wide meant that he was effectively making two changes to his line-up.

With Rojo having previously played in that full-back role and the back-line looking pretty solid before hand, you could say that the multiple changes upset the shape of their defence.

In my opinion van Gaal got that wrong.

It will be interesting to see how it affects them going forward. The Swansea blip aside, they were starting to look like a comfortable unit in the Premier League it could be that Shaw’s injury and the modifications it brings upsets the balance at the back slightly.

As far as England goes, it could be even more tricky.

Shaw’s absence will add to the injuries ruling both Leighton Baines and Keiran Gibbs out of international duty, and it could cause some problems in the left-back position.

However with England already qualified for Euro 2016 and games against Lithuania and Estonia coming up in October it could be that Roy Hodgson sees it as a perfect opportunity to experiment to see who can slot in that position.

I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s too late for anyone to make a late burst for a Euro 2016 spot, but whether the likes of the in-form pair of Joe Gomez at Liverpool or Aaron Cresswell at West Ham are quite ready for senior internationals I’m not so sure.

They’re both playing well for their clubs but I’d feel they’d have to step it up further to be considered.

In the end though, Luke Shaw’s injury shows just what a kick in the teeth football can deliver sometimes.

He went to Manchester United and LVG said he was a little bit chubby here and there and he needed to do things to get himself ready for the season.

He did all that, worked his socks off in the close season and looked after himself to make sure he was ready. He was in fantastic form and had seen himself come into the England squad.

A compound fracture is a horrible injury but the good thing is that players do come back from it quicker than they used to.

All those years ago when I was playing players rarely came back from it the same again after that sort of injury.

The excellent medical skills and the treatment they get these days is second to none and I’m sure he’ll be back, and challenging for his place back at Old Trafford.

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