Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has clarified Luke Shaw was taken off as a ‘precaution’ at half-time in the win against Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon.

Victor Lindelof emerged to warm up at the interval at Villa Park and replaced Shaw for the second half. It was a straight swap and Raphael Varane and Harry Maguire continued at centre half.

Shaw has already sustained thigh and muscular injuries this season and many feared the worst when he was substituted, but Ten Hag was keen to stress his removal was a precaution.

When asked about the left-back in his post-match press conference, Ten Hag said: “Was precaution, Luke Shaw, he gave some messages about complaints.

“With Luke Shaw, we know his history with too many injuries and we couldn’t go into that risk. A very important game but we can’t miss him for six weeks.”

Shaw has started the last four matches for United and he will be assessed at Carrington this week, but the early suggestion from Ten Hag is he could be available against Luton Town.

United have already been hit with multiple injuries to full-backs this season. Aaron Wan-Bissaka is currently sidelined after suffering a setback in his recovery in preparation to play Villa and Tyrell Malacia remains a long-term absentee after having two rounds of surgery on a knee injury.

Lisandro Martinez became the latest to suffer an injury problem after being forced off during the 3-0 win over West Ham. The Argentine endured a spell on the sidelines after suffering an ankle injury at the beginning of the season, he returned towards the end of 2023 but he is set to miss at least eight weeks with a knee issue.