Man United star Christian Eriksen is currently out injured but is doing well in his recovery.

Heart in mouth. Hands above head. Eyes wide open in disbelief. Sluggish Andy Carroll just bumped into Christian Eriksen for no apparent reason, leaving him in a pile from which he struggled to get back up. Unnecessary challenges that lead to intestinal injury.

Carroll would receive his long overdue marching orders later in the game for misjudged tackles like the BBC executive ordering Gary Lineker to apologize for tweeting the mildest opinion of government policy but the damage was already done. Eriksen left Old Trafford after the FA Cup win over Reading on crutches due to an ankle injury that kept him out for months.

It came as a bitter blow to Manchester United. While Eriksen has been inconspicuous in comparison to fellow newcomers Casemiro and Lisandro Martinez, he has also played a key role in the team’s transformation under Erik ten Hag.

United’s midfield completely lacked technical ability last year and could barely string a pass together, playing a major role in a dismal and dull season that produced the club’s worst Premier League finish. Eriksen’s introduction is crucial, especially for a manager who wants his team to be proactive on the ball.

Eriksen brings long-lost competency in possession and a range of passing that Fred and Scott McTominay are unable to pull off. It helped modernize United and make them a team that can compete with the best in the country again. Losing him was a crushing blow and left many supporters wondering if the progress made would end there.

Much like when Casemiro was suspended, there was real anxiety over United losing their most important player as the decline in the quality of their replacements was glaring. To their credit, United moved quickly to compensate for the loss by moving to take Marcel Sabitzer on loan as soon as they learned the extent of Eriksen’s injury.

While results have mostly remained good without Eriksen, the team has not played as well as him and the lack of options in midfield can lead to burnout as the busy schedule continues.

Eriksen was always projected to be back in late April or early May and Ten Hag provided an upbeat update this week when he revealed the 31-year-old is making good progress and will feature again this season. “I think he will play, yes, for sure,” said Ten Hag.

“I can’t say what to expect right now, but I think his progress in rehab is fine, going according to plan. So we will see for sure but not before the international break. Yes, he is (engaged in a team meeting). But the main focus right now is to get back as soon as possible because we need all the players.”

This is great news. As Ten Hag explained, United need as many options as possible as they are battling on three different fronts, but one of Eriksen’s qualities will provide a massive boost at the right time. If Eriksen is able to return at the end of April, which sounds likely, he will be back with a few games to spare including two big games against Chelsea and Tottenham. Then there are potentially two finals in May. United have been terrific in the Europa League and FA Cup, so there’s no reason why they shouldn’t dive deep into the competition.

Eriksen’s ability as well as experience will come in handy and for United to be back to full strength at the most crucial moment could give them the extra edge needed to make a great season even better.