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Van Persie Ruled Out For Six Weeks

 

Manchester United’s hopes of rescuing their season with Champions League glory were dealt a hammer blow when Robin van Persie was ruled out of both legs of the quarter-final with Bayern Munich.

The striker, whose hat-trick against Olympiacos on Wednesday set up the tie with the European champions, will be out for up to six weeks — meaning he may not be fit until United’s final Premier League game on May 11.

After a day of tests on the injury he suffered near the end of the Olympiacos game, United’s medical staff confirmed that Van Persie had a strained knee.

 At one time there were even fears in Holland that the 30-year-old’s problem might be serious enough to rule him out of the World Cup.

The diagnosis was good news for the Dutch, but was a huge blow for United and their manager David Moyes as he looks to revive a season which looks increasingly likely to end with the club failing to qualify for the Champions League for the first time in 19 years.

United play Bayern at home on April 1, then travel to Munich eight days later. That gives Van Persie no chance of taking part.

Bayern have knocked United out of the competition twice since Sir Alex Ferguson’s side famously beat them with two late goals to win the Champions League final in 1999, and will be firm favourites when they meet next month.

However, Moyes, fresh from another meeting with chief executive Edward Woodward to discuss his summer transfer targets, has watched Bayern several times this season and believes that he has spotted weaknesses United can exploit.

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