Manchester United prospect Sonny Aljofree has reportedly been unable to make his first-team debut due to an obscure Premier League decision.
The Premier League giants are suffering an injury crisis in defence, with Harry Maguire the only senior centre-back available.
Academy star Willy Kambwala has partnered in United’s last three games, most recently in the 2-2 draw at Bournemouth.
With Lisandro Martinez, Raphael Varane and Victor Lindelof out of action, The Sun reports that Erik ten Hag wanted to call up Under-21 star Aljofree.
The 19-year-old, who is the son of former Plymouth star Hasney, is said to have made the bench and possibly started in their 4-3 FA Cup quarter-final win over Liverpool .
However, Aljofree cannot be selected for United’s senior team due to his joint registration agreement with National League side Altrincham.
The centre-back was loaned out for the remainder of the season in February, but can still play for academy teams. He made 18 appearances for United’s Under-21s and even managed them.
Aljofree is yet to feature in a senior team and will be unable to do so for the remainder of the season due to this loan deal, although he will not feature at all for Altrincham.
It will come as a blow to Ten Hag, who have named young defenders Harry Amass and Habeeb Ogunneye on the Bournemouth bench.
Martinez and Lindelof are ruled out until the start of May at the earliest, with United saying Varane is out for the next few weeks.
The club’s current defensive weaknesses were evident in Saturday’s draw as they faced at least 20 shots for the sixth consecutive league game.
United sit seventh in the table but could drop even further in the run-up, which would mean their worst result in the Premier League.
Ten Hag was asked about the possibility in his post-match press conference, but said: “I’m not commenting. I’m not answering that question. It’s not that important at the moment.”
He then got up and headed for the exit as the pressure begins to mount again amid a four-game winless streak.
Qualification for the Europa League or Europa Conference League is still at stake in their last six league matches.
United are also in the FA Cup semi-final, where they will face Championship side Coventry City on Sunday afternoon, which will be shown live on talkSPORT.
Manchester United prospect Sonny Aljofree has reportedly been unable to make his first-team debut due to an obscure Premier League decision.
The Premier League giants are suffering an injury crisis in defence, with Harry Maguire the only senior centre-back available.
Academy star Willy Kambwala has partnered in United’s last three games, most recently in the 2-2 draw at Bournemouth.
With Lisandro Martinez, Raphael Varane and Victor Lindelof out of action, The Sun reports that Erik ten Hag wanted to call up Under-21 star Aljofree.
The 19-year-old, who is the son of former Plymouth star Hasney, is said to have made the bench and possibly started in their 4-3 FA Cup quarter-final win over Liverpool .
However, Aljofree cannot be selected for United’s senior team due to his joint registration agreement with National League side Altrincham.
The centre-back was loaned out for the remainder of the season in February, but can still play for academy teams. He made 18 appearances for United’s Under-21s and even managed them.
Aljofree is yet to feature in a senior team and will be unable to do so for the remainder of the season due to this loan deal, although he will not feature at all for Altrincham.
It will come as a blow to Ten Hag, who have named young defenders Harry Amass and Habeeb Ogunneye on the Bournemouth bench.
Martinez and Lindelof are ruled out until the start of May at the earliest, with United saying Varane is out for the next few weeks.
The club’s current defensive weaknesses were evident in Saturday’s draw as they faced at least 20 shots for the sixth consecutive league game.
United sit seventh in the table but could drop even further in the run-up, which would mean their worst result in the Premier League.
Ten Hag was asked about the possibility in his post-match press conference, but said: “I’m not commenting. I’m not answering that question. It’s not that important at the moment.”
He then got up and headed for the exit as the pressure begins to mount again amid a four-game winless streak.
Qualification for the Europa League or Europa Conference League is still at stake in their last six league matches.
United are also in the FA Cup semi-final, where they will face Championship side Coventry City on Sunday afternoon, which will be shown live on talkSPORT.