Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho has had to change his summer transfer plans following Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Marcos Rojo's knee injuries.
The club compared that the pair both suffered 'significant' ligament damage in the Europa Cup quarter-final second leg win over Anderlecht and could be out for the rest of the year, report the Manchester Evening News .
The injury to Ibrahimovic means that the Swede is now unlikely to stay on for a second season at Old Trafford, but the Red Devils had already been looking into alternatives in case he had decided not to sign on for next season.
Torino striker Andrea Belotti and Everton figurehead Romelu Lukaku, both 23, have been monitored while United wanted to sign Antoine Griezmann irrespective of whether Ibrahimovic stayed or left.
When asked whether United's plans had altered, Mourinho replied: "Yes. Yes. Because if I don’t have the players for a long period of time, obviously it affects."
Eric Bailly was the only defender to arrive at United last summer but Rojo's injury could force Mourinho to make two defensive additions.
United have shown interest in Benfica centre half Victor Lindelof, Atletico Madrid defender Jose Gimenez and Paris Saint-Germain centre-back Marquinhos, Mourinho also retains an interest in his former player Raphael Varane - still at Real - and Atheltic Bilbao's highly-coveted Aymeric Laporte, who is represented by Mourinho's agent Jorge Mendes.
Mourinho was unconvinced by the suggestion City are under greater pressure since the top four is their only route to qualifying for the Champions League.
Regardless of where they finish in the Premier League, United will qualify for the Champions League if they win the Europa League in May.
"I don’t know what they feel, the way they want to approach," Mourinho said. "Our approach doesn't depend on the fact that we have another door open. Our approach now is Manchester match, the next match is the most important one.
"We don’t have player A, B, C and D, we have others. We think about the others. We organise the team with the others and we give everything we have to give and when we have given everything nobody can demand more from you."