Hargreaves Limps Out Of United Comeback

Owen Hargreaves lasted less than six minutes on his return to the Manchester United side when he limped off in the 2-1 win over Wolves at Old Trafford.

The 29-year-old midfielder had been handed a shock first Premier League start since September 2008 following a long battle with chronic knee problems.

"We took a gamble with Owen," United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said.

"But he only lasted five minutes. It was a disaster. He has hurt his hamstring, which is unbelievable."

Hargreaves had barely settled into the match when he pulled up after delivering a cross into the box.

The England international came off holding his hamstring and was replaced by Bebe.

Hargreaves has been plagued by knee injuries for two years, undergoing surgery on the problem - performed by famed surgeon Dr Richard Steadman - and seeing numerous attempts at a return hampered by pain and tendonitis.

The Canadian-born England international sat out United's pre-season tour to America in order to consult specialists in a bid to get to the bottom of the problem, and did not feature in any of the club's first 10 league games.

However, Ferguson sprung a surprise by naming him in the starting XI against Wolves alongside Darren Fletcher in the middle of midfield.

Hargreaves's return was short-lived, though, and it would appear the midfielder now faces another spell on the sidelines.

The former Bayern Munich player, who joined Manchester United in 2007 in a £17m deal, has now made only 39 appearances for the club.

Meanwhile, Ferguson revealed captain Nemanja Vidic, Patrice Evra and Paul Scholes had all been suffering from a flu virus, which was partly why he was forced to rely on less experienced players during what was a patchy United performance.

"We have done really well to get a result," Ferguson added.

"You have to admire the perseverance of the team because we have done it so many times.

"But it was a long struggle today because we made so many changes."

The home side took the lead through Park Ji-Sung on the stroke of half-time before substitute and former United youth player Sylvan Ebanks-Blake equalised after the break.

And deep into stoppage time, Park popped up with a brilliant individual winner for United, which Wolves boss Mick McCarthy said they did not deserve.

"That was harsh - everyone knows we deserved something out of it," the former Sunderland manager reflected.

"But we didn't get anything. Nowt. Diddly-squat.

"I could wax lyrical about the performance but I am not going to. We got nothing from the game. To do that after playing so well at Old Trafford could do some damage to us."