Sir Alex Ferguson is weighing up pulling the plug on Owen Hargreaves' Manchester United career.
Hargreaves, who has not started a game for more than two years, is battling against the clock in his bid to save his United career.
Hargreaves had operations on both knees 10 months ago in a bid to cure tendonitis that sabotaged his Old Trafford hopes shortly after his ÂŁ17million move from Bayern Munich in 2007.
Ferguson said: “It is going to be difficult for Owen. The boy has not been back playing for more than two years.
“It is not an easy situation. He will have to play this season, otherwise he will have a terrible problem mentally because three years out is a long time.
“His contract is up in the summer but there is a one-year option so we will have to see where we are in the new year.
“The surgeon gave us first-class news and we were very positive about it ourselves.
“Owen came back and did really well training when he first came back, but he seems to have regressed and is back with the physios.
“There are no more operations he can have. The problem now is his calf injuries.
“That sometimes happens – you compensate by putting more pressure on other areas of the body.”
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