I was really disappointed to hear this as Hargreaves is exactly the type of player we have missed over the last few games (as well as a decent back-up for Rooney, but that's a different story). He is exactly the kind of midfield enforcer we need, and more than that, he is a player who relishes the big games. At times in the last two seasons, it has looked like Fletcher has been out there by himself. Scholes and Giggs are legends at this club and always will be, but it is unfair to ask them to play week in, week out at this stage of their careers. But this situation has been thrust upon Sir Alex as Carrick continues to let us down on the biggest stages, Anderson has disappointed and Darron Gibson is still learning his trade.
I had really been looking forward to Hargreaves returning, it would have been like a new signing for us. Sir Alex hasn't exactly ruled him out of contention, but he did say the following about the situation - "It is difficult to say when Owen will be back... His training performances have been, but I think at the moment midfield is not an issue for us as we have plenty of alternatives". It's hard to say whether he has a lack of faith in Hargo, which I highly doubt. The most likely situation is that all of our games from now on are absolutely must win and he might not want someone as short of match practice as Hargo is likely to be. Unlike some, I am of the opinion that Hargreaves is far from finished and will have a massive role to play next season on what will hopefully be a much-changed midfield.