Man Utd Team News: Giggs Confirms Double Blow But Van Persie Could Return

Manchester United will be looking to end a disappointing season on a high note as they welcome Sunderland to Old Trafford on Saturday afternoon.

Ahead of the game, interim boss Ryan Giggs has been speaking to the media at his pre-match press conference today and gave ManUtd.com a team news and injury update.

Reports in this mornings newspapers claimed that Wayne Rooney was a major doubt for the game after leaving training on Thursday with a stomach bug while tests also revealed he was suffering from a minor groin strain. Giggs has confirmed these reports are true but hasn’t ruled out the 28-year-old entirely, saying he wants to play and will be assessed over the next 24 hours.

Giggs also revealed that goalkeeper Anders Lindegaard is suffering from a bug so David De Gea is likely to continue in goal, however Robin van Persie could return to the starting eleven after recovering from a knee injury that’s kept him out for six weeks.

The Dutchman returned to training late last week having spent some of his rehabilitation time back in his homeland, but Giggs insists the 30-year-old won’t be risked unless he’s 100% fit. He told the clubs website:

“A few of the lads have had a bug. Wayne has and Anders [Lindegaard] has too. Wayne also has a tight groin. You have to be careful with the bug because the immune system is down a bit but Wayne, being Wayne, wants to play. We’ll monitor it over the next 24 hours.

“Robin has been back training this week and has looked good. Whether tomorrow is too early, we’ll just have to see how he goes today. He has looked really good this week.”

Should both Rooney and van Persie be ruled out, then Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernandez will vie for a starting spot in attack. United head into the game looking to build on last weeks 4-0 win over Noriwch and keep alive their slim hopes of overhauling Tottenham to sixth place in the Premier League table.