The striker, who had been returning to form, will miss Europa League and FA Cup action, as well as an important Premier League clash with title chasers Arsenal.
Manchester United and England captain Wayne Rooney could be out for as long as two months with a knee ligament injury, Goal understands.
The forward was left out of United’s squad for their Europa League clash with Midtjylland on Thursday evening, with club physios having had it confirmed on Wednesday morning that the captain has sustained damage.
Rooney is expected to be sidelined for between four and eight weeks at a crucial time of United’s season and with the Euro 2016 finals also on the horizon.
Speaking to the media in Denmark on Wednesday, manager Louis van Gaal confirmed that his captain had picked up a knee problem but stopped short at estimating how long he could be out for.
When asked to put a time frame on the injury, he told reporters: “That’s difficult to say, but he was injured in the game v Sunderland. He has a knee problem but we have to wait and see how long that takes.”
The 30-year-old lasted the full 90 minutes of Saturday’s defeat to Sunderland and it is not the first time he has picked up an injury so close to a major international tournament, with Rooney now set to miss friendlies against Germany and Netherlands in March.
He will also be sidelined for the FA Cup tie against Shrewsbury, the upcoming Premier League clash against Arsenal and is unlikely to be back in time for the Manchester derby on March 20.
Despite largely being criticised for his performances this season as United have struggled for form, the skipper had hit a purple patch in recent weeks, scoring five times and assisting a further three goals in his last eight league outings.
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