In January 2010, it was speculated that Hargreaves was initially slated to return in time for Manchester United's Champions League first knockout round tie against Milan, despite not being fully match-fit. However, on 4 February 2010, Hargreaves suffered a major setback to hopes of playing in the 2010 FIFA World Cup as Sir Alex Ferguson omitted him from the squad for the knockout stage in favour of Belgian defender Ritchie De Laet. It was expected that Hargreaves would make his return from injury in a reserve team match against Manchester City on 11 March, but on the day of the match, Hargreaves pulled out of the game to continue with his training regime. He eventually made his comeback a week later, playing for 45 minutes of Manchester United's reserve team match against Burnley on 18 March. On 24 April, Hargreaves was named as an unused substitute for the first-team match against Tottenham Hotspur.