Alan Shearer has suggested Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag’s decision to bench Marcus Rashford against Crystal Palace must mean something has happened behind the scenes.
Rashford was benched for the goalless draw at Selhurst Park on Saturday despite scoring three goals in the last two games.
Ten Hag had claimed pre-match that the decision was due to rotation, with Rashford ultimately introduced as a substitute on the hour mark as Man United chased the opening goal.
The Man United boss rounded on claims by Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp that the decision not to start Rashford hinted at a disciplinary issue, branding the suggestion as ‘crazy’.
Redknapp had highlighted Ten Hag’s comments in a press conference ahead of the match, where the Dutchman had stressed the importance of Rashford maintaining the right lifestyle.
Marcus Rashford was dropped to Man United’s bench against Crystal Palace on Saturday
Alan Shearer suggested the decision indicated something has happened behind the scenes
Man United boss Erik ten Hag insisted Rashford was named on the bench as part of rotation
Speaking on the Rest is Football podcast, host Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer also questioned Ten Hag’s decision.
‘It looks like, reading between the lines, it might be some disciplinary issues because he (Ten Hag) kind of mooted that in his press conference that “Marcus has got to be professional”,’ Lineker said.
Shearer responded: ‘Why else would you leave him out?’
‘When things have been criticised, and I was one of them, for performances, but then you get your goal last weekend, you get another couple in midweek.
‘Why would you actually even contemplate leaving him out? My guess is, and it is a guess, it has to be something different.’
Ten Hag had raised the topic of Rashford’s lifestyle ahead of the match, after being questioned about the star rediscovering some of the form that saw him fire 30 goals in the Dutchman’s first season at Old Trafford.
The forward came off the bench as Man United pressed for an opening goal on Saturday
Rashford’s lifestyle had been raised as a topic ahead of the match against Crystal Palace
Rashford missed training following a 12-hour tequila bender in Belfast and going nightclubbing after United lost the Manchester derby in October 2023
The 26-year-old’s performances had dipped alarmingly last term after signing a new £300,00-a-week contract, and he was censured by Ten Hag for missing training following a 12-hour tequila bender in Belfast and going nightclubbing after United lost the Manchester derby in October.
Ten Hag had been asked whether Rashford had learned from the experience.
He replied: ‘I think he always knew, and every player knows, because when your lifestyle is not right you can’t perform.
‘You don’t get the right levels when you don’t have a good and disciplined life away from Carrington.
‘At the end of the day, he has to do it by himself. He has to set his life right, his training attitude right, his match attitude right. When he sets his professionalism, he will perform because he is a class player.
‘Marcus Rashford knows when there are setbacks how to get fightback, how to set his career, his performance. He took control of it and I think he is on the way back. He has started the season very good now he has to continue and to progress.’
Redknapp had claimed that ‘something has happened’ between Ten Hag and Rashford
Following the draw against Crystal Palace, Ten Hag hit out at ‘speculation’ following Redknapp’s comments on Sky Sports.
‘I heard already the speculation (from) some pundits,’ Ten Hag said post-match. ‘That’s crazy. I would almost say that you as a person you are not okay when you bring such speculation if you don’t know what’s (going) on.
‘This is just rotation. We have many games to cover and more than 11 players, but we have to give all the players their chances if they perform. Finally we will find out and the players who perform better will play more.
‘But this has nothing to do (with Rashford). I am very happy with Marcus with everything – his defending, his offensive part. He scores in this moment, he performs very good. So nothing to do with him being on the bench, just rotation.’
