Callum McAvoy
Published January 11, 2026 6:44pm
Updated January 11, 2026 6:44pm
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Luke Shaw was nowhere to be seen as Man Utd crashed out of the FA Cup (Photo: Getty)
Darren Fletcher has provided an update on Luke Shaw after he missed Manchester United’s FA Cup third round defeat to Brighton.
United will almost certainly go trophy-less for a second successive season after crashing out of the cup at the first hurdle on Sunday.
Goals from Brajan Gruda and former Red Devil Danny Welbeck put the Seagulls in control in the all-Premier League clash at Old Trafford, with the sacking of Ruben Amorim last week not sparking a turnaround in form.
Benjamin Sesko pulled a goal back late on but it was too little too late, with youngster Shea Lacey sent off in the final few minutes to cap off another miserable day for United.
Interim manager Fletcher named as strong a starting XI as he could, with several key players yet to return from injury or AFCON, but there was one surprise absentee from the matchday squad: Shaw.
The defender had started all but one of United’s games so far this season, missing only the humiliating Carabao Cup defeat to Grimbsy Town in August as Amorim gave him a rest.
The absence of such an experienced player comes at a difficult time, with United recovering from yet another managerial change and huge Premier League games against Manchester City and Arsenal up next.
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Danny Welbeck returned to haunt United and put Brighton in the fourth round draw (Photo: Getty)
It was reported ahead of kick-off against Brighton that Shaw’s absence was not injury related however, with the 30-year-old dropped and resting after starting four games in 16 days.
Fletcher has confirmed this, telling MUTV that the decision was made: ‘Mainly because the players have had a busy schedule, there’s been a lot of games, some of the players’ loads have gone, you know, really high.
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‘Skeleton squad with injuries, players at AFCON, so I felt it was important that those players, especially Luke and Case [Casemiro], played a lot in minutes.
‘So just trying to freshen them up, keep them right, don’t want to risk any more injuries, and then also give opportunities to some other players.’
Shaw should therefore be available for the Manchester derby next Saturday, but it remains to be seen whether he or Patrick Dorgu will start.
More to follow…
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