London: Manchester United have denied reports that defender Chris Smalling has a broken toe and could be absent until late December.
“The manager (Jose Mourinho) says it is not true,” a club representative told Reuters on Friday.
Mourinho appeared to question the commitment of Smalling and left back Luke Shaw after the England internationals missed Sunday’s 3-1 win over Swansea City.
The Portuguese manager said that Smalling “doesn’t feel that he can play 100 per cent without pain”, adding that there was “a difference between the brave, who want to be there at any cost, and the ones for whom a little pain can make a difference”.
Both players were overlooked for England’s World Cup qualifier against Scotland on Friday with interim manager Gareth Southgate telling reporters that “they are not fit and that’s ruled them out for us this time”.
He did not specify what the injuries were.
“Obviously it’s a difficult one because I don’t know the reason for the comments Jose’s made,” Southgate added.
