ERIK TEN HAG appeared to hit out at Jamie Redknapp after the retired pro speculated why the Manchester United boss had decided to drop Marcus Rashford.
Ten Hag dropped Rashford to the bench for United’s goalless draw with Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Erik ten Hag appeared to hit out at Jamie Redknapp in his post-match press conference[/caption]
Redknapp has speculated as to why Ten Hag dropped Marcus Rashford for the Crystal Palace clash[/caption]
Rashford was dropped to the bench for the goalless draw[/caption]
The decision shocked most fans after Rashford had bagged three goals in the past week against Southampton and Barnsley.
And Sky Sports pundit Redknapp had suggested that “something happened” to cause such a decision for the United gaffer.
However, Ten Hag issued a spiky rebuttal to that suggestion, claiming that any pundit speculating about the decision is “not okay” as a person in his post-match press conference.
Claiming it was simply a tactical decision, Ten Hag said: “I heard already that there’s speculation from some pundits.
“That is crazy! I would almost say that, as a person, you are not okay if you bring such speculation if you don’t know.
“This is just rotation. We have many games to cover and we have more than 11 starting players.
“We have to give all the players [chances]. If they perform we will give them there chances.
“We will find out that the players who play better will play more but this has nothing to do [with that].
Man Utd struggled to make things tick in front of goal, drawing 0-0 with Palace[/caption]
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“I am very happy with Marcus, with everything. With his defensive parts, with his offensive. He scores in this moment.
“He performs very good and it’s nothing to do with it that he was on on the bench – it’s just rotation.”
Man Utd ratings vs Crystal Palace as Andre Onana saves the day for wasteful Red Devils
MANCHESTER UNITED were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw at Crystal Palace as they missed a flurry of first-half chances.
Erik ten Hag shocked fans this afternoon when he left Marcus Rashford out of his starting XI.
And the Red Devils failed to make a breakthrough – dropping two more points.
Here, SunSport’s Jordan Davies delivers his Man Utd player ratings…
ANDRE ONANA – 8/10
Had one save to make just before half time – a comfortable one from Eberechi Eze.
And then, a worldie double save to keep out Eddie Nketiah and Ismaila Sarr, rivalling the one made by Arsenal’s David Raya in mid-week.
NOUSSAIR MAZRAOUI – 7
One of United’s most consistent performers who continues to impress week by week. Strong in the tackle and great positioning to stop Palace counters.
MATTHIJS DE LIGT – 7
Lost an early duel with Jean-Philippe Mateta which put the Frenchman in but it was pulled back for a foul. Blamed his boots and changed them moments later.
Unlucky with a brilliant header from a corner that was somehow kept out by Dean Henderson and made a superb last-ditch tackle to stop Eze in the second half.
LISANDRO MARTINEZ – 6
Another player who came close to scoring but for the brilliance of Henderson, swivelling and turning in the six-yard box with a stabbed effort.
Lucky not to be sent off for a ridiculous two-footed lunge that narrowly avoided contact with Daichi Kamada.
DIOGO DALOT – 7
Played as a left winger for most of the first half, such was United’s dominance.
Brilliant pick out only for Garnacho to hit the crossbar.
KOBBIE MAINOO – 7
Covered ground well and linked defence with attack. Drifted forward more in the second half without seriously threatening.
An insane Cruyff piece of skill in the second half was worth the admission fee alone.
CHRISTIAN ERIKSEN – 6
Kept things ticking over and picked some nice passes at times but his lack of pace and physicality was evident.
BRUNO FERNANDES – 7
Tenacious in ensuring Palace’s midfield could not get a foothold in the game and grazed the top of the bar with a volley into the ground just before the half hour mark.
Was United’s most creative player on the ball and should have had one goal to his name at least.
AMAD DIALLO – 6
Showed glimpses with some darting runs but never possessing the intent and aggression to force anything meaningful from it.
ALEJANDRO GARNACHO – 7
Had a personal battle with Henderson, one that he ultimately lost.
Early chance to show it was the right call to start ahead of Marcus Rashford squandered – put through by Zirkzee but 1v1 effort palmed away by Henderson.
Smacked the bar in a similar position from Dalot’s through ball and came close to knocking one in from close range.
JOSHUA ZIRKZEE – 6
Linked up well with Garnacho, dropping deep and slipping the winger in that should have led to the opener. Headed wide from a Diallo corner just before the break.
Rightly subbed off on the hour mark as his influence waned.
SUBS:
MARCUS RASHFORD (ZIRKZEE, 61) – 6
Did very little to convince Erik Ten Hag to throw him back into the starting XI, but was barely given the service either.
MANUEL UGARTE (ERIKSEN, 76) – 6
United certainly appear calmer and more solid with him at the base of their midfield.
RASMUS HOJLUND (DIALLO, 76) – 6
Still getting minutes back into his legs after returning from injury, but this is one of his more forgettable cameos.
Redknapp had suggested live on Sky that something wasn’t quite right about Rashford‘s exclusion at Selhurst Park.
He said: “It feels like something has gone untoward. You don’t drop a player that’s scored two in midweek and Southampton.
“I’d be nervous to say he’s back but he’s certainly showing signs of the energy a few years ago.
“It feels something has happened this week, the manager’s frustration.”
Ten Hag ultimately had to turn to Rashford in the match as his Red Devils were firing blanks in front of goal despite domination throughout the game.
The England international was brought on for Joshua Zirkzee in the 61st minute, but failed to have any real impact on the game.
The 26-year-old failed to get a shot away during his 30-minute cameo, making just six accurate passes in that time too.
That said, there were no United players who set the world alight in front of goal with the match ending goalless in South London.
Man Utd still sit in the bottom half of the Premier League table after Saturday’s draw with Palace.
Ten Hag’s side have won two, drawn one and lost two of their opening five clashes in the league.
However, the under-pressure boss is convinced that his side should have taken all three points at Palace to push themselves into the top half.
He said: “We should have won. In the first half, we left them alive. We should have scored one or two goals. The second half was more balance”.
“We have worked very hard as a team to be defensively compact. Also, on the ball we want very good structures and control”.
Rashford was brought off the bench in the second half[/caption]
