MANCHESTER United manager Sir Alex Ferguson could be without eight senior players for the Champions League clash with Basel at Old Trafford. Wayne Rooney misses with the hamstring injury that sidelined him for Saturday’s draw with Stoke and he was among a long list of players who did not train at United’s Carrington HQ.
Also absent was Rooney’s strike partner Javier Hernandez, who limped off early in the Stoke game with a dead leg and has been ruled out of the game against the Swiss outfit, and Ferguson will be choosing between Michael Owen, Dimitar Berbatov and fit-again Danny Welbeck in his attack.
But the problems do not stop there for United. Central defenders Jonny Evans (ankle), Chris Smalling (groin) and Nemanja Vidic (calf) also did not train.
That is almost certain to mean Rio Ferdinand lining up alongside youngster Phil Jones, with Antonio Valencia again pressed into service as an emergency right-back as Rafael (shoulder) is out with a long-term problem.
Fellow long-term casualties Tom Cleverley (foot) and Darron Gibson (ankle) have long since been ruled out for United who drew their opening match with Benfica in Lisbon a fortnight ago, while Basle are group leaders after defeating Romanian side Otelul Galati in their first game. (PA Sport)
Rooney, Hernandez miss Basel
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