Gary Neville calls for ‘moping’ Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho to ‘come back stronger’ after missing out on the Manchester derby.
Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim made a bold choice to leave both star wingers out of his matchday squad entirely for the trip to Man City.
It paid off in the end as United produced an impressive comeback in the final moments to defeat City 2-1 to make it eight defeats in 11 games for their rivals.
Despite their win, the hot topic post-match was the axing of Rashford and Garnacho.
Neville backed Amorim’s decision after the game.
“I don’t know about their long-term future,” Neville told Sky Sports.
“But what is really clear is that Amorim mentioned engaging with teammates, he’s mentioned standards.
“He’s giving us clues, in fact, emphatic clues, about the last few days that they’re moping and not doing their bit around the training ground.
“It’s standards in training and he’s thought ‘no, I’m not having it, I’m not accepting it.’ Good on him.
“For far too long we’ve seen players mope around that pitch and still continue to get a game or on the bench.
“No. It’s got to be non-negotiable. If you don’t give your all in your job, you’re gone, you’re out. That’s it.”
Even though they have been left out, Neville does not think it is the end of the road for these players.
3
“We’ve been sat in this studio for years as ex-Man United players saying ‘give your absolute all’ and players haven’t been running back,” he said.
“We’ve seen Rashford and Garnacho stand on that left and right wing and not chase back when full-backs have gone past them and still stay on the pitch. No more.
“I want Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho to come back stronger.
“Take the message that they’ve been given by training at the training ground this morning on a Sunday with no one else there.
“I want them to take this in the right spirit and become the very best players for Manchester United.
“I don’t care who you are, whether you’re Andrei Kanchelskis or Ryan Giggs, David Beckham, Nani, whoever you are as a wide player at Man United you’ve got to run this way [forward] as fast as you can and run that way [backwards] as fast as you can.
3
“They have got the talent, they’ve got the ability, but if they don’t do that there is no place for you in the club, there is no place for you in the team.”
Despite being left out, Rashford celebrated Diallo’s goal from the comfort of his own home.
He shared a post on Instagram, with the caption: “Yesssssssss! Love it lads.”
Roy Keane also shared his take on the situation, saying had it been him as a player, being left out for such a big fixture would leave a mark.
“If a manager mentioned that about you as a player after the match and gave those little signals about why you’ve been left out of a first-team squad, not on the bench in a big game, a derby game against Man City, and you heard these noises coming out about what he may think about you you’d be ashamed of your life,” the former United captain said.
“To come out with these noises that they were training this morning, training at the training ground, they have to keep on top of their fitness. He knows what he is doing this manager. Amorim is a smart cookie and he’s got a bit of power now.
“Those players at home must be sitting there thinking ‘good god, I’m embarrassed, that’s what he’s saying about me.’
“He’s had to make big decisions, that’s what he’s done. His eyes don’t lie to him.”
Attention will now turn to United’s Thursday night Carabao Cup quarter-final at Tottenham.
It remains to be seen whether Rashford and Garnacho will feature.