REVEALED: Rasmus Hojlund could be SIX weeks away from being fit for Manchester United with the Red Devils likely to proceed with caution after splashing £72m on the Danish striker
- Rasmus Hojlund could be six weeks away from being fully fit for Man United
- He has a stress response hotspot in his back - a common issue for young players
- Mark Leather, formerly Liverpool's head physio, discusses the situation
When MRI scans show what they call a stress response hotspot, it is basically a stress fracture. It is not too serious and very common in teenage footballers.
Often they reach 17, 18 or 19 years of age and there’s a sudden increase in the intensity and workload on an immature skeleton.
Usually, it occurs in the lower back — the repetitive running, twisting, kicking, jumping and landing placing a high load through the soft tissues and ligaments and increasing the stress through some tiny bones between the vertebrae.
It will feel a bit sore and stiff. On the scans, it will show up as a very fine line through a very small bone. If it shows up, it is a fracture and you have to stop and off-load.
Most often, it will occur on one side only, the left or the right. If it is on both sides this is more serious because then there is a danger the vertebrae can slip and put pressure on the spinal cord, and this would require more time and careful assessment.
![£72m new boy Hojlund could be six weeks away from being fully fit for Manchester United](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/08/08/22/74100857-0-image-a-44_1691528701411.jpg)
£72m new boy Hojlund could be six weeks away from being fully fit for Manchester United
![An MRI scan during his medical revealed a stress response hotspot in his back](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/08/08/22/74100859-0-image-a-45_1691528791949.jpg)
An MRI scan during his medical revealed a stress response hotspot in his back
On one side only, you’re looking at two to three months to heal properly from the time the player stops. As Rasmus Hojlund played for Denmark on June 19, he could still be at least six weeks from full fitness.
Without knowing the severity of any particular injury, it is impossible to be sure — but to be back inside three months for a relatively simple stress fracture is a good outcome.
They can recur so easily, and with the proximity to the spinal cord and other nerves and soft tissues, the doctors will rely wholly on scans even when the player says they feel fine. The only way to judge how it is healing is the scan.
If it is ‘hot’ and ‘active’ it has not healed and, given the price tag, Manchester United will proceed with caution, managing Hojlund’s workload, aware that he has missed out on pre-season.
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