Marcus Rashford missed Manchester United’s must-win match at Fulham(Credits: MI News/NurPhoto/Shutterstock)
Marcus Rashford missed Manchester United’s must-win game against Fulham after failing a late fitness test.
The out of sorts forward travelled with the rest of the first team squad to London on Friday, despite reportedly having missed yesterday’s training session.
Rashford was put through his paces before Ten Hag’s side was officially named but he hasn’t been risked ahead of another vital game in midweek against FC Copenhagen in the Champions League.
Rashford’s omission follows Ten Hag branding the England international’s decision to celebrate his birthday in the wake of last weekend’s Manchester derby defeat as ‘unacceptable’.
‘Yes, I am aware of it,’ Ten Hag said of Rashford’s post-derby night out. I spoke with him about it. It’s unacceptable, I told him, he apologised and that’s it. For the rest it’s an internal matter.’
There was no place for Raphael Varane despite the defender having recovered from illness (Picture: Getty)
Ten Hag repeated it was an “internal matter” when asked if Rashford had been fined for an incident.
The United boss also clarified that his place among the substitutes in Wednesday’s 3-0 Carabao Cup exit to Newcastle was due to rotation rather than punishment.
Rashford was dropped to the bench at Wolves last season for timekeeping, but Ten Hag rejected the notion that the academy graduate is not attuned to his demands.
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‘Your suggestion is not right,’ he said. ‘He’s fitting in, he’s very motivated to put things right.
‘I know which effort he is putting in. He’s totally with us. So, he makes a mistake, but that doesn’t say he’s not fitting in. I see him every day in training, what he’s doing, I know.
‘So, he makes one mistake but also, off the pitch, what he is doing, how he lives, and I’m sure he is doing everything right to help the team to perform and to let us win.’
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