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14th July 2025
03:40pm BST
An ex-Manchester United player and academy graduate has filed a legal complaint with the UK High Court for clinical negligence, over medical advice he received during an injury-plagued spell at the club, per The Telegraph.
27-year-old defender Axel Tuanzebe left United for Ipswich in September 2023, after making just 37 appearances across eight years at the club.
Despite struggles with fitness and form, Tuanzebe is remembered fondly by Manchester United fans.
In 2020 the centre-back put in a Man of The Match-worthy display to help United beat PSG in the Champions League round-of-16. Aged just 22, he managed to keep both Neymar and Mbappe at bay as United shocked the French superclub to progress to the quarter-finals.
It was just months after that inspirational performance that Tuanzebe’s fitness struggles began.
While warming up before a Premier League fixture with Liverpool in October 2019, the centre-back picked up a hip problem. This was quickly followed by another injury during a Carabao Cup fixture that December, ruling Tuanzebe out for the remainder of his breakthrough season.
From then on, the injuries would continue to stack up and Tuanzebe would never again return to seriously feature within United’s first-team squad.
It was only after leaving The Red Devils at the conclusion of his contract that the DR Congo International began to rebuild his career.
Tuanzebe went on to make 40 appearances for Ipswich and has just this summer joined newly-promoted Premier League side Burnley.
He'll line up alongside Kyle Walker as the Clarets look to become the first promoted side to avoid relegation in England's top division for three years.
Neither of Axel Tuanzebe's legal team nor his former club Manchester United have made a public statement about the lawsuit yet.
While Manchester United are yet to comment on the lawsuit, the club spoke very highly of the defender when he left the club in 2023. A statement on their website still reads: “His departure is an emotional one for the player and many at the club who have known and helped nurture him over the years.
“A fine character, he leaves United universally respected as a credit to himself and his family.
“Everyone at the club would like to extend our best wishes to Axel as he embarks upon the next chapter of his career. We would also like to thank him for always representing Manchester United with class and dignity.”
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