Carlos Baleba faces a potentially significant spell on the sidelines after suffering a hamstring injury during Manchester United's dramatic 3-2 Champions League victory over Roma, with manager Michael Carrick admitting the injury 'doesn't look great'.
The Cameroon international made a promising run into the Roma box shortly after half-time but pulled up just as he looked set to get a shot away. Baleba immediately grabbed his hamstring, and it soon became clear the medical team would not be able to prolong his evening.
The 22-year-old was in tears as he made his way off the pitch after an extraordinary comeback victory at Old Trafford.
Carrick's update on Baleba
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Carrick said: 'I haven't got any more news on Carlos at this stage but obviously it's his hamstring and we'll have to assess it more in the next few days.'
'Initially it doesn't look great but I haven't got much more to give you than that in terms of a timeframe or anything.'
Following Carrick's comments, former Manchester United midfielder Nicky Butt said on Amazon Prime: 'It looks like Baleba will be out for a while now and that won't help United because they don't seem to be able to get a settled team out on the pitch.'
Baleba has made an unconvincing start to his Old Trafford career following a £70m summer move from Brighton and now looks set for a significant spell on the sidelines.
Comeback victory
Manchester United have endured their worst start to a season in 40 years and looked on course for a fourth successive defeat as Roma stormed into a 2-0 lead at Old Trafford.
Matias Soule put the Italians ahead on 11 minutes, and Donyell Malen doubled Roma's lead five minutes later from the penalty spot after Ayden Heaven blocked a shot with his arm.
The Red Devils were once again booed off at half-time but improved drastically after the break, finding a lifeline just before the hour mark through Bruno Fernandes' retaken penalty.
Carrick's side still trailed with ten minutes remaining, but Matheus Cunha then scored two goals in six minutes to turn the game around and potentially save his manager's job.
Carrick's reaction
'It was a good night,' Carrick said. 'I have to give a lot of credit to the players for starters, showing that character and quality when we needed it.'
'This place does incredible things, magical things and we spoke about it at half-time. I thought we grew into it a little bit first half after giving away the goals too easily.'
'We spoke at half-time about how this place can change, it only takes one moment. The boys made every little bit of every little opportunity really and were fantastic in the end.'
Asked what the remarkable comeback win means for Manchester United, Carrick added: 'It's a win for us as a football club.'
'To see the supporters go home happy is what we live for, to give them performances and nights like this so they can get back again energised.'
'As a team, we've shown a lot of character to weather what we've had to. You find out a lot about each other.'
'The players will find out things about me, I certainly do about them and their character, what it means to them and what they're prepared to put in.'
'Tonight was right at that moment. It depends what happens next, we've got to make the most of it, we've got to move forward but I'm feeling a lot better about things tonight.'
Manchester United, now 17th in both the Premier League and Champions League, face Aston Villa at Old Trafford on Sunday.
