Carrick to sit out Villarreal visit
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Article summary
Sir Alex Ferguson expects Michael Carrick to miss the holders' UEFA Champions League opener against Villarreal CF on Wednesday after the midfielder left Anfield with his right foot in plaster on Saturday.
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Benayoun tackle
The 27-year-old originally injured his ankle against Newcastle United FC on 17 August but was fit to start at Liverpool FC despite not being available for England's recent FIFA World Cup qualifiers. However, Carrick came off worse in a first-half collision with Yossi Benayoun and had to be replaced at the interval by Ryan Giggs, only returning to the bench with the aid of crutches.
'Not serious'
Sir Alex, whose side relinquished an early lead to lose 2-1, said: "It's not serious. We've had an x-ray and nothing is broken. There was a hard tackle on him and we'll probably have a better assessment over the weekend, but I don't think he'll be ready for Wednesday." United say Cristiano Ronaldo could be available for the visit of the Spanish runners-up as the Portuguese is recovering well after an operation on his ankle, although Paul Scholes will sit out the opening Group E fixture through suspension.
