Cesc Fabregas has confirmed that an injury crisis has hit Como ahead of their Champions League clash with Manchester United, with Jesus Rodriguez set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines. The Spanish manager also dismissed talk of a crisis at the Red Devils and said the match will be historic for the club.
Jesus Rodriguez faces a lengthy spell out
Fabregas revealed that Rodriguez injured himself while taking a shot at goal at the end of training. “Jesus Rodriguez will be out for a long time: he took a shot at goal at the end of training today and injured himself. It does not look like a minor injury, but something a little more serious,” he said.
The Como boss also gave updates on three other players. “Chalobah will be out for two weeks, so he will miss four matches. We’ll see whether Kean can make it for Saturday, while Diao will return after the break.”
A historic day
Fabregas stressed the importance of the occasion and the quality of the opposition. “Tomorrow will be a historic day, once again. We’re going through a special period and we need to adapt well, aware of the importance of the challenge. United are a great team with great players and an incredible history. We’ll try to win, as always.”
United in crisis? You’re making it up
Fabregas rejected the idea that United are in crisis. “Crises in football don’t exist: there’s a match every three days, and there’s no time to think about whether there’s a crisis or not. It’s eleven against eleven, and you try to win. You invent the crisis; we don’t feel it because we’re professionals who want to compete.”
He added: “I don’t believe in these things: they’re Manchester United and they have great players. We’ll try to win, as I said before.”
Messi’s shirt
Fabregas also reflected on what the occasion means for Como. “I think it’s an honour to see the best player in history wearing our shirt. Until recently, it was unimaginable. An evening like tomorrow’s is a reward for what we’ve done in recent years. We deserve to play matches like this. We’re really looking forward to it and proud to be able to play in it.”