How Injuries Have Affected EPL Top Six Sides as Manchester United, Chelsea Struggle

At some point in the Manchester derby on March 3, inside the first 20 minutes, Erik ten Hag had managed to pin down Manchester City with great tactical ingenuity.

Ten Hag approached the game with no recognised number 9, opting to push Marcus Rashford to the one wing with Alejandro Garanacho manning the other side.

Bruno Fernandes and Scott McTominay were the two roaming number 10s, or false 9s, leaving the Manchester City defence with no clear person to mark. The goal came from a Fernandes run from deep before laying it off to an on-rushing Rashford.

But as ten Hag quickly realised, you can't play defensive against a Pep Guardiola side for 80-plus minutes. His system worked, and it only took Phil Foden's masterclass to breach the defence. The Dutch tactician blamed injuries for the defeat, arguing that the two teams had no huge gulf in class.

Injuries to Big Six clubs this season

Sports Brief looks at the number of injuries to key players each traditional Big Six club has had this season and how it has affected their position on the table.

1. Manchester United

Sticking with the Red Devils, ten Hag lacked Luke Shaw, Lisandro Martinez, and Rasmus Hojlund (guaranteed starters) for the trip to the Etihad. Johnny Evans couldn't complete a 90-minute high-tempo game and had to be withdrawn.

A Raphael Varane-Martinez-Shaw partnership at the back could have given United a chance to combat the marauding City attack.

Ten Hag has also had to do without Casemiro for large parts of the season. New signing Mason Mount has also barely had a kick since making the shock switch from Chelsea. Even Harry Maguire, who wrestled his place back in the starting XI, has been unfortunate with fitness issues.

United have lacked adequate replacements for their injured stars, but academy graduates like Kobbie Mainoo have done well to convince the fanbase. They are currently 11 points off the guaranteed Champions League spots, and despite getting it tactically wrong at times, one has got to feel for the cards ten Hag has been dealt with.

2. Manchester City

Remaining in Manchester, Kevin De Bruyne's injury in the first game of the season spelt doom for Guardiola's quest to do back-to-back treble wins. De Bruyne has been at the heart of everything City do, and his absence was going to be felt greatly.

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Only that it wasn't - Phil Foden stepped up, recording his best-goalscoring season to date. Erling Haaland also missed more than a month with a niggling foot problem, but Julian Alvarez was available to provide cover.

Unlike United, the Citizens have had the luxury of calling on able replacements for their injured stars.

The only issue for Guardiola wasn't injury-related. The club failed to win any game that Rodri was suspended for back in October.

3. Chelsea

Chelsea's problems stem from the board's new policy of buying young players. Majority of the players are also yet to get a steady run of games under Mauricio Pochettino.

Christopher Nkunku was earmarked as the leader of Chelsea's new attack only for a knee injury and further relapses to limit him to just ten appearances. The Blues sit fourth on the big chances missed list - chances many believe the Frenchman would have buried.

Pochettino has also had to do without his captains, Reece James and Ben Chilwell, but luckily, the former's position has been adequately covered by new signing Malo Gusto - who also missed a month with a knee problem.

This, coupled up with inexperience, has seen the West Londoners struggle to break into the top half.

4. Liverpool

The league leaders have a piled-up list of absentees, but to Jurgen Klopp's credit, he has somehow found a way to keep winning.

The Carabao Cup final win against Chelsea and the recent last-minute win over Nottingham Forest momentarily made the Reds faithful forget the injury woes.

Top scorer Mohamed Salah is yet to recover fully from an injury picked up at the Africa Cup of Nations. Diogo Jota, Trent Alexander-Arnolrd, Andre Robertson, Thiago Alcantara, Alisson, and Curtis Jones have all been out for extended periods of time this season.

The main question for Klopp is whether he would be able to keep the fire burning in the run-in if he doesn't have some of his stars back.

5. Arsenal

Arsenal's last season's Premier League campaign was derailed at the tail end after injuries to keep players like William Saliba and Thomas Partey.

The club responded by signing Declan Rice, who has proven to be a masterstroke as Partey got injured again. Injuries haven't affected the side as much this season. Their lull in form at the end of last year was down to a lack of a proficient goalscorer and not injuries per se - an issue they have since rectified in record-breaking fashion in 2024.

Be that as it may, Mikel Arteta is still 'winging it' without any of his left-backs, with Oleksandr Zinchenko joining Jurrien Timber on the mending table.

6. Tottenham Hotspur

Spurs were title contenders at some point. Ange Postecolglou had managed to pick up the team after losing the best player in their history and led them to the top of the table.

Then disaster struck. In one game, the former Celtic coach lost James Maddison, Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero (suspension). They then went on a five-match losing streak and ceded their control at the top.

Football isn't a theoretical sport, but one can't help but wonder where clubs like Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham would be if they had all their key players available.

Jamie Carragher predicts Premier League winner

Sports Brief has also reported that Jamie Carragher predicted the EPL title race. Defending champions Manchester City are locked in a three-way battle with Arsenal and Liverpool for the 2023/2024 honours.

Manchester City play Liverpool this weekend in a top-of-the-table clash, while Arsenal take on Brentford. Only two points separate leaders Liverpool and Arsenal in third.