Rio Ferdinand shares Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho suspicion after Man Utd axe

Rio Ferdinand has suggested that Ruben Amorim’s decision to leave Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho out of the Manchester derby squad might have been due to something he “heard or saw something he was unhappy with” at training. The new Manchester United head coach raised eyebrows on Sunday by excluding the two attackers from the squad for the crucial clash against Manchester City.

Despite the unexpected move, United clinched a 2-1 win, with Amad Diallo playing a pivotal role in the triumph. Amorim’s bold strategy has earned him praise for asserting his leadership, particularly before such a significant match.

Following the victory, Amorim gave an insightful interview about his selection process, prompting United icon Ferdinand to suggest that the omission of Garnacho and Rashford could be tied to their conduct at the club’s Carrington training base, potentially something as trivial as not acknowledging staff members properly.

On his Rio Presents podcast, the ex-defender remarked: “This manager doesn’t seem to be the type of guy that will let stuff slide. He seems to be a very honest and straightforward guy. We saw Erik ten Hag do this early, going against players.

“But in time, the consistency wasn’t there across the board with other players. The squad then starts picking holes in that. I’d like to think it’s different with Amorim, he seems very direct, ‘you’re not playing – that’s it and that’s why’.

“I think in the training ground, he’s instructed all of his staff to keep their eyes open about everything. How do these players interact with all members of staff? How are they when I’m not in the room? He seems like a man of detail.

“He wants a harmonious environment. A proper culture of respect. I think he’s seen or heard a couple of things that he isn’t quite happy with. There’s something not related to football that I think has happened. They probably flippantly did not say hello to someone or have not been as warm to people.

“These little one-per-centers add up to building a culture to win. If you let these go, the culture to win takes even longer. Every single detail, ‘I don’t like that, nail it’. Punctuality, respect for team-mates, etc.

“I think something’s gone on in the training ground, and I’m not privy to that information, but for him to talk about things not related to football about why players aren’t in his squad that week, something’s happened off the pitch. He’s thought, ‘that ain’t for me’. And by the way, I love it.”

Amorim, meanwhile, stated after the game that the duo will be given the opportunity to work their way back into his good books. “Next week, next game, new life,” he said.

“They (Rashford and Garnacho) are fighting for their places but for me it’s important, the performance in training, the performance in game, the way you dress, the way you eat, the way you engage with team-mates, the way you push your team-mates. Everything is important when we want to change a lot of things.

“They have to fight for a place in the team and today the team proved we can leave anyone out of the squad and manage to win if you play together.”

Former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy lauded Amorim’s approach while discussing the matter on Match of the Day 2, commenting: “I think what’s great about Amorim is… as week to weeks go he’s going to play who’s playing well and who’s training well.

“I think it was a brilliant interview. He covered it (Rashford and Garnacho’s absence) superbly, in every detail. He isn’t writing people off. They’re not done. He’s going to give them a fresh start next week like he said and I think United fans will have been very impressed with the way he’s dealt with it.”

Even though Rashford has contributed seven goals in 24 appearances and Garnacho also eight goals in the same number of games, both young talents have shown flashes of frustration during their recent form slump. Last May, Rashford got into a public row with a match-goer by the sidelines of Old Trafford, and in a similar vein, Garnacho had an unfriendly verbal brush with a fan before a Europa League clash against PAOK in November.

These incidents highlight the pressure and scrutiny faced by United’s stars, underlining the turbulent nature of pinnacle-level football.

It is yet to be confirmed whether the duo will make a comeback to the matchday squad on Thursday when United face Tottenham in their Carabao Cup quarter-final tie.