A Michael Owen injury tempered Manchester United's 2-1 comeback victory over an ambitious Wolfsburg side. Owen withdrew 19 minutes into the game that had brought England coach Fabio Capello to Old Trafford to judge whether the striker deserved a place in the country's squad for upcoming games against Ukraine and Belarus.
Owen had been troubled by a groin injury that prevented him from full training during the week and, in hindsight, United manager Alex Ferguson may regret gambling on the player's fitness. Owen could miss United's next two league matches, against Sunderland and Bolton Wanderers, as well as their next Champions League game, a trip to Russia to play CSKA Moscow on 21 October.
"Groin injuries are difficult to assess but it is maybe going to be two to three weeks," Ferguson said. "He felt his groin in training on Sunday and could train only a little bit on Monday. He had a rest on Tuesday and he thought he was fine. But groins are groins and on a wet surface like that he's turned quickly, it has gone again and we've had to take him off. It's not serious, but groin injuries can be troublesome."