By JAMES SHARPE and ROBERT SUMMERSCALES
Published: 19:40 EST, 19 December 2024 | Updated: 19:40 EST, 19 December 2024
Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim defended his decision once again to leave Marcus Rashford out of the squad for the second game in a row despite watching his side crash out of the Carabao Cup.
Rashford missed the Manchester derby and then revealed in a bombshell interview that he was 'ready for a new challenge' ahead of Thursday's 4-3 defeat at Spurs.
'No, it is not [a mistake],' insisted Amorim about his decision. 'I feel that I do the right thing for the team so it's never a mistake.
'We have to make a selection, sometimes you lack in the game and you see some guys go into the game and change it a bit but I don't think it was a mistake because I'm always doing the best for the team in my way of seeing things.'
Tottenham won Thursday's seven-goal thriller after almost blowing a 3-0 lead.
Two strikes from Dominic Solanke and one from Dejan Kulusevski had seemingly put the home side in total control before keeper Fraser Forster produced a couple of blunders to gift goals to substitutes Joshua Zirkzee and Amad Diallo.
Ruben Amorim saw his Manchester United side lose 4-3 at Tottenham on Thursday evening
The big news before the game was that Amorim had left out Marcus Rashford (left) once again
A goal direct from a corner kick by Son Heung-min then gave Spurs some breathing space, only for Jonny Evans to set up a tense finish when he found the net in the fourth minute of added time.
United's dramatic Carabao Cup exit came just four days after they came from behind to win 2-1 at Manchester City in the Premier League.
Amorim made headlines before kick-off on Sunday by leaving Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho out of his squad, despite both forwards being fit to play.
Speaking at the weekend, the manager explained: 'They are fighting for their places.
'But for me it's important: the performance in training, the performance in the game, the way you dress, the way you eat, the way you engage with team-mates, the way you push your teammates.
'Everything is important in the beginning of something. When we want to change a lot of things, when people in our club are losing their jobs, we have to put the standards really high.
'Today, the team proved we can leave anyone out of the squad and manage to win if you play together.
'There are some things that have to change. But it is a new life, it's not a disciplinary thing.
Rashford had been left out of the squad on Sunday too when United won at Manchester City
Alejandro Garnacho (No 17) also missed the City game but he featured off the bench at Spurs
'If it was disciplinary, I would say that here and it will be a bigger problem, but it wasn't that.
'I want to improve my players and you understand that for so long we tried, for example, with Rash. It does not work. Let's continue to do the same thing or try something different?
'So it's as simple as that. We have to improve our standards outside the pitch.
'If they train well and they are better than the other guys inside and outside the pitch, they will play or be on the bench.'
Garnacho returned to the bench for United on Thursday and eventually featured for the final 20 minutes plus stoppage time against Spurs.
But Rashford was again left out after the 27-year-old told former Times journalist Henry Winter earlier this week that he was eyeing a move away from Old Trafford.
Rashford said: 'For me, personally, I think I'm ready for a new challenge and the next steps.
'When I leave it's going to be "no hard feelings". You're not going to have any negative comments from me about Manchester United. That's me as a person.
Rashford, 27, said earlier this week: 'I think I'm ready for a new challenge and the next steps'
Despite being under contract for another three and a half years, Rashford could be set to leave
'If I know that a situation is already bad I'm not going to make it worse.
'I've seen how other players have left in the past and I don't want to be that person. When I leave I'll make a statement and it will be from me.'
When asked if he would always be a Red at heart, Rashford – who has been at the club from the age of seven and who made his debut in 2016 - replied: 'Yes! 100%. 100%.'
Rashford has spent his entire club career to date at United.
He has scored 138 goals in 426 first-team appearances for the Red Devils - at a rate of one every 3.09 games. But he has only found the net 15 times in 67 appearances over this season and last - averaging a goal every 4.47 games.
His current contract at Old Trafford is due to expire in June 2028.