EX-MANCHESTER UNITED star Axel Tuanzebe is suing the club for £1million in damages over alleged “clinical negligence” over “medical advice” he received.
News the defender had lodged a legal claim in the High Court in London .
Former Man Utd star Axel Tuanzebe is suing Man Utd for £1million after they allegedly failed to treat an injury ‘appropriately’Credit: Getty
A claim lodged in the High Court claims Tuanzebe isn’t able to play football ‘without restriction’Credit: Getty Images – Getty
But court documents seen by Sky Sports have now revealed details of the claim by the former Red Devils star.
joined the academy at the age of eight and won the Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year award in 2015 before making his senior debut in January 2017.
However, his club career at never truly got off the ground despite some uniquely impressive displays – including against Paris Saint-Germain – as he suffered from persistent injuries.
And the crux of his claim against United over the alleged handling of an injury says he is no longer capable of playing “without restriction or impediment”, which has therefore impacted his career and earnings.
Tuanzebe, who left United in 2023 and now plays for , “expects to recover damages in excess of £1million” if he wins the case.
The documents reveal the lead allegation from Tuanzebe’s camp relates to a left-sided pars fracture – a stress fracture in the lower spine – suffered in January 2020.
The 27-year-old DR Congo star’s issue reportedly became chronic in July 2022 when he sustained the same injury on the right side of his spine.
He is said to have been left in “significant pain and discomfort since their development and deterioration”.
Tuanzebe and his legal team claim: “The defendant [United] failed to properly investigate the claimant’s pars fractures, failed to rest the claimant and failed to refer him to a specialist sports spinal surgeon.
“As a result, the claimant’s symptoms significantly progressed to bilateral grade 4 fractures, and he developed a left-sided chronic spinal fracture.”
A referral to a specialist spinal sports surgeon would have apparently seen him sidelined for 12 weeks.
However, following the January 2020 injury Tuanzebe was back playing for United’s youth team by March 2020 and the senior side in October.
In December of that year he told the club he was suffering from hamstring pain after sprinting, with concerns for the lower spine at the start of the year “not imaged on this occasion”, according to the lawsuit.
It said: “By allowing the claimant to train and play as normal from February to March 2020 and thereafter, he suffered more serious symptoms than he would have if he had been diagnosed promptly and treated appropriately with rest.”
While on loan with in January 2022, his lower left-side back pain led to the Italian giants sending Tuanzebe for scans, with United then informed the player was having difficulty getting out of bed and into his car.
Then United senior club doctor and head of sports medicine and science, Dr Steve McNally, is claimed to have “indicated no urgency” for him to return home for an examination.
Dr McNally, who left the club in December 2022 after 16 years, is also said to have told Tuanzebe the problem was “most likely” not a stress problem but rather a disc irritation or change in posture mechanics which usually resolves with physio rather than being serious.
The lawsuit says a CT scan saw Dr McNally exclude a stress fracture, with an “inflamed facet joint between the vertebrae” being suggested instead.
Tuanzebe won the Man Utd Young Player of the Year award in 2015Credit: Getty
He went on to play 37 games for United but saw his Old Trafford career plagued by injuryCredit: PA
The 27-year-old now plays for Burnley after leaving Man Utd in 2023Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
However, Napoli’s club doctor said analysis of a CT scan showed a potential stress fracture described as a “chronic incomplete lysis of the isthmus of L5 with intact superior cortical profile”.
Dr McNally reportedly responded to this by saying it was already visible from a scan in 2017 so did not think it “would cause your current pain”.
Despite reporting pain in June 2022, Tuanzebe went on United’s pre-season tour of – following recommended pain relief injections in March 2022 – before asking to return to for treatment.
Medical reports in August 2022 show a stress fracture of the spine was reported in MRI and CT scans.
Tuanzebe eventually returned to full training by January 2023 and joined Stoke on loan, although ongoing discomfort limited him to just five appearances there before United released him upon the expiry of his deal.
The lawsuit reportedly adds Tuanzebe believes the issue would not have become chronic on his left side, or been triggered on the right side, if United had treated the problem appropriately.
Instead an “appropriate treatment plan” was only implemented in April 2023 – some three years later.
The lawsuit reads: “Appropriate treatment plans would, on the balance of probabilities, have resulted in the claimant avoiding the pain and discomfort set out below and would have resulted in him being able to play professional football at elite level without restriction or impediment.
“As it is, although he continues to play at an elite level, this has impacted his career and earnings.”
Man Utd declined to comment.
