Manchester United's defensive crisis is set to hand youngster John O'Shea the chance to prove he could be the long-term replacement for Jaap Stam. After the shock sale of the Dutchman manager Alex Ferguson has spent the season watching his defence commit a catalogue of errors this season.
Now he has the headache of finding enough fit defenders to field a team. Ronny Johnsen, David May, Wes Brown and Denis Irwin are long-term injury casualties, while Gary Neville strained a groin and Laurent Blanc broke his nose in the defeat of Boavista on Wednesday.
The long list of injuries has prompted Ferguson to consider handing O'Shea his first United start after he impressed as a substitute in the midweek Champions League victory.
Filed by Sinéad Kissane
