Louis van Gaal believes it was a bad tackle that left Shaw injured
Injuries. The little ones rarely inspire too much sympathy when £30m fees are involved. But this is different. Of course, the big ones are hazards of the job. It's just that Shaw had worked so hard - mentally and physically - to give himself every chance of success after last season's travails.
"I think that is what knocked my confidence down: I never got fully fit. So whenever I was playing I wasn't at my best and I didn't feel at my best," he said recently. "Now I am playing and I feel great. I trained before I went back to pre-season. That was a massive help to me.