According to The Sun, Manchester United are one of the six Premier League clubs that are set to have their Brazilian stars banned for games after the international break, putting into doubt the availability of first-team star Fred post the international games.

The Brazilian FA are set to ‘demand’ FIFA to take some concrete action against the six Premier League clubs that refused to let their players for international duty.

This comes after the Premier League clubs put out a unanimous statement which entailed that those players that will be travelling to ‘red list’ countries will not be allowed to leave for international duty.

Players who return from ‘red list’ countries need to isolate for a minimum of 10 days in UK Government approved hotels. This would have been a blow for several Premier League clubs, including Manchester United.

The Red Devils, who have Fred in their ranks, refused to let the 28-year-old leave on international duty as it would mean that the Brazilian would miss the game after the international break as well as the first game of the Champions League group and possibly another Premier League game.

Thus, in a bid to not lose some of their first-team stars for 3 matchdays, the Premier League clubs maintained their rigid stance. Alongside Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Leeds United, Everton, and Manchester City also did not allow their players to leave for the break.

If the Brazilian FA succeed in their appeal to ‘ban’ the Brazilian players of the aforementioned clubs, Fred could be unavailable for the Red Devils for five days – a rule previously decided by FIFA.

This is a difficult situation with the whole club vs country debate sparking up again. Nonetheless, it would come as a huge blow for the Red Devils should Fred be prohibited from playing, especially given that Scott McTominay is already sidelined with an injury.

(By Varun Pai, Weallfollowunited, 02.09.2021, GETTY Images)