Manchester United ace Luke Shaw missed 305 days due to horrific leg break... now he must take his chance under Jose Mourinho

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Luke Shaw's road to recovery is finally complete having been out for 10 months — or 305 days to be precise — after breaking his leg against PSV Eindhoven on September 15, 2015.

The 21-year-old was a big miss for United last season with his understudy Marcos Rojo failing to live up to the former Southampton man's heights. 

Louis van Gaal also deployed Cameron Borthwick-Jackson and Daley Blind in the left back area but the lack of regularity in their defensive department cost United and led to the sacking of the former Holland boss. 

Luke Shaw made his long-awaited comeback against Wigan after 10 months on the sidelines

Shaw runs out on to the DW Stadium pitch after making a full recovery from his horrific leg break

The Manchester United left back was ruled out for the rest of the season following the challenge in September

Shaw will go down as a Van Gaal signing despite United chasing the then-Southampton teenager months before his arrival. The Dutchman simply gave the move the green light after taking over the reins from David Moyes, who had put in the groundwork to entice him away from St Mary's.

Chelsea, who Shaw supported as a boy, were battling it out to sign the English prospect but were put off by his enormous price-tag. 

In fact, new United boss Mourinho said the £27milliion fee and his reported £100,000-a-week wages would have 'killed' his then-employers Chelsea. 

'If we pay to a 19-year-old boy what we were being asked for, to sign Luke Shaw, we are dead,' Mourinho said shortly after Shaw's move to Old Trafford was finalised.

'We would have killed our stability with financial fair play and killed the stability in our dressing room, because when you pay that much to a 19-year-old kid - a good player, fantastic player — but when you pay that amount of money, the next day, we would have had players knocking on our door.

'They would have been saying, "How is it possible I play 200 games for this club, won this and that, yet a 19-year-old comes here and gets more money than I get?"'

Mourinho finally has 'fantastic player' Shaw in his grasp but will have to ease him back into the first-team picture following his lengthy spell on the sidelines. 

His predecessor — Van Gaal — deserves credit for the way he handled Shaw after the Englishman turned up for training unfit and overweight on his first day at the club.

Van Gaal wasted no time in putting Shaw on a special fitness programme during United's pre-season tour of America in 2014 after seeing him up close for the first time.  

'He's OK but I'm always a trainer-coach who looks at individual players and what they need,' said Van Gaal after watching Shaw's first few training sessions as a United player.

'He needs to be fit and he is not very fit therefore he can't produce the performance that I want.

'So he has to get himself fit and train individually. I can't judge when he will be ready.'

Mourinho was interested in Shaw during his time at Chelsea but was put off by his high wage demands

Louis van Gaal signed Shaw after David Moyes put in the early groundwork to bring him to Old Trafford

Southampton also previously had concerns over Shaw's fitness and diet throughout his time at St Mary's, with his love for fast food highlighted when he was videoed tucking into a Burger King as he made his way back from a Premier League match against Swansea in May 2014. 

Shaw admitted in April 2015 that he struggled to cope with the pressure of playing for United during his first year at the club. 

The England international went as far as seeing a psychologist to stop him worrying about his performance levels. 

Now he must try to replicate his early 2015-16 form and prove to Mourinho that he is the man to fill the left back void vacated by Patrice Evra.

Shaw has already gone a long way in ensuring he is the man to start the season as United's first choice left back ahead of Rojo, Blind and Borthwick-Jackson by impressing against Wigan.

Marcos Rojo failed to impress in Shaw's absence and could now be either sold or loaned out by Mourinho

Shaw has the potential to become the long-term successor to Old Trafford legend Patrice Evra

Mourinho didn't expect to be able to call on the services of Shaw for another few weeks but the full back skipped a holiday to work on his recovery over the summer.  

'When I found Luke Shaw in the training ground, it was a surprise for me because I thought he cannot be ready,' said Mourinho.

'But he did fantastic in the summer, sacrificed his holiday, staying in the city and training every day. He is trying hard and was mad to play more than 45 minutes but for me, it's better 45 safe than more, so let's go step by step.'

Shaw has shown he has the ability, drive and commitment to be Manchester United and England's first choice left back for the next 10-15 years.

But he must first find a way of putting the last 10 months behind him and show Mourinho why he was worth the money.