Injury update: Cavani steps up recovery

The 33-year-old picked up a knock in the Reds' 3-1 win at West Ham United at the start of December and had to be withdrawn at half-time due to the problem.

Cavani then missed subsequent games against RB Leipzig and Manchester City, although manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer did say last week that our no.7 had returned to training “on the grass”.

Since then, Edinson’s recovery process appears to have progressed well, with the forward pictured training ahead of our Premier League game with Sheffield United on Thursday.

Despite that, speaking in his pre-match press conference, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said it's unlikely that Edinson will be fit in time for our trip to Bramall Lane.

"We have to be mindful of little strains and niggles and decisions have to be made," the boss told reporters on Wednesday afternoon. "From the kick-off of Sheff United to the kick-off of Aston Villa it's 15 times 24 hours, so it's going to be very tight.

"Edinson has done well in his rehab, but we still have to make a decision if we should risk him because it is a risk a little bit too early. I doubt he'll be available for me to pick him tomorrow.”

Despite Cavani's absence, for the clash with Chris Wilder’s men, the Reds should still be able to call upon the services of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial, Odion Ighalo and Mason Greenwood, who netted his first Premier League goal in this fixture last season, at his disposal.

A win at Sheffield United would be our 10th in a row away from home in the Premier League, and should results elsewhere go our way, the Reds could move into the Champions League places with a victory. We also still have a game in hand on the majority of sides near the top, ahead of the jam-packed Christmas schedule.