Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim has once again overlooked Marcus Rashford, leaving the disruptive striker out of the squad for the visit of Bournemouth on Sunday for “selection” reasons.
Rashford was initially dismissed by United's new boss for last weekend's Manchester derby before being left out for the midweek Carabao Cup quarter-final against Tottenham Hotspur.
United dramatically collected three points against City last weekend but succumbed to a 4-3 defeat at Spurs. Despite the exit from the cup, Amorim did not repent regarding the appearance of Rashford, who has publicly expressed his desire for a “new challenge”.
Ahead of Bournemouth's visit to Old Trafford, Amorim insisted Rashford trained with the team and was available. However, for the third game, the Englishman did not even make it to the bench, let alone the starting 11.
Amorimi said bluntly Sky Sports before the match that Rashford had been left out for “the same reasons” and dismissed the call as simply a matter of “selection”.
The Portuguese coach did not specifically describe why the winger left in the first place. Amorim would only indicate the principles he values after the Manchester derby, explaining that he makes his own selection decisions based on “practice performance, game performance, the way you dress, the way you eat, the way you engage with your teammates and push your teammates.”
While Rashford was still in United's squad – the forward has scored three goals in six appearances under Amorim – reports emerged claiming the club had set up their academy graduate for sale.
Amorimi was asked on Sunday by Sky Sports whether his team selection had been influenced by outside figures at the club. The coach gave a blunt answer. “No, that's not possible,” he said. “It is my decision and it will always be. It is selection.
“I want to see the best of my players, I try different things with different players.”