Ayden Heaven could return to Manchester United training after the international break and could even be back in the team in the coming weeks.
Signed from Arsenal in the January transfer window, Heaven has enjoyed an impressive run in the first-team in recent weeks.
After appearances off the bench against Fulham and Arsenal in the FA Cup and Premier League respectively, the 18-year-old made his full debut in the Europa League victory over Real Sociedad, stepping in for the injured Leny Yoro.
He was rewarded with another starting appearance against Leicester City last Sunday and was United’s best player in the first period at the King Power Stadium.
Heaven was left in agony however as he was stretchered off in the second half.
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Sky Sports refused to show a replay of the incident that led to the stop in play, prompting fears the teenager had suffered a serious injury.
Heaven later left the stadium wearing a protective boot but without the need of crutches.
There was further optimism earlier this week when it emerged the defender was back at Carrington without wearing that protective boot.
The Manchester Evening News also reports there is a strong chance Heaven could resume full training when his teammates return from international duty.
While many feared the worst when Heaven was stretchered off, the defender appears to have avoided any serious ankle damage. Analysing the injury, Stephen Smith, Founder and CEO of Kitman Labs, suggested a timeline for two to four weeks before Heaven can return to action.
Ayden Heaven injury latest - not as bad as first feared?
It looked like it was quite minor, albeit one where he was in a quite a lot of pain.
Our thoughts were his ankle wobbled as he came down onto it. It was likely one of two things – it was ligament damage from the movement in his ankle or the peroneal muscle group that stopped his ankle from rolling that gave him that tweak and a little strain in one of those muscles.
It could have been a slight hairline fracture but I think that would have been the worst case scenario. With the other two, you are probably talking about a couple of weeks out. 2-4 weeks is probably on the money.
Stephen Smith, Kitman Labs Founder and CEO, was speaking exclusively to Metro.
Kitman Labs is the world’s leading performance intelligence and technology company, specialising in injury welfare and performance analytics working with the Premier League.
United have been hit by injuries at the back with Lisandro Martinez ruled out for the rest of the season.
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Leny Yoro picked up a knock in the 1-1 draw against Arsenal, missing his side’s last two games with Harry Maguire also absent in recent weeks. Jonny Evans meanwhile has not featured since November.
Luke Shaw has played just four times under Ruben Amorim with no clear timeline on his return.
Given injuries elsewhere, Heaven has proved to be a valuable asset for the manager’s 3-4-3 formation with United eager to get him back in time for their Europa League quarter-final against Lyon.
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