Scott McTominay faces a spell on the Manchester United sidelines after undergoing groin surgery just two games into the Premier League season.
The Scotland international will also be unavailable for his country while he recovers, with United not putting a timeline on that prospect.
He was omitted this week from Steve Clarke’s squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Denmark, Moldova and Austria.
United said in a statement on Thursday: “Scott has undergone surgery for an ongoing groin injury that was causing significant pain when playing.
“Having tried all other treatment options in pre-season, surgery was deemed necessary to resolve the issue. We hope to have him back soon.”
Midfielder McTominay will miss Sunday’s clash at Wolves, as United attempt to stretch their Premier League away unbeaten run to a record-breaking 28 games.
It then remains to be seen how well he recovers from surgery, with league games against Newcastle United, West Ham and Aston Villa approaching in September, along with the start of the Champions League group stage.
But McTominay is optimistic his absence will be a short one.
He wrote on Instagram: “Just to let you all know I’ve had minor surgery on an issue which has needed managing for the last couple of months, I hate missing games so to be missing Wolves on the weekend and the international break is so disappointing but that’s part and parcel of the game.
“Wishing all the boys the best of luck and I will be back sooner than you think.”
McTominay came through the United academy and emerged firstly as a favourite of Jose Mourinho before continuing his progress under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s leadership.
He has proven a useful member of the first-team squad; curiously, though, United have had a higher win percentage from the games when he has not featured since the beginning of last season.
When McTominay has started, United have won 52.6 per cent of their games (20 of 38), but when he has not been selected in the starting XI that win rate has been 64 per cent (16 of 25).
The points-per-game difference is less marked, however, with United picking up an average 1.9 points with McTominay and 2.0 when he has not started.
McTominay has proven his combative qualities again since the beginning of the 2020-21 campaign, with his duel success rate of 58.17 per cent rivalled only by Nemanja Matic (56.05) among United midfielders.
When it comes to tackles by United midfielders, only Fred (121) and Bruno Fernandes (89) have made more than McTominay (81) in the same period.
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