The Independent
·19 December 2024
The Independent
·19 December 2024
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Ruben Amorim responds to Marcus Rashford comments over Manchester United future
Tottenham host Manchester United in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup, with both sides looking to take another step towards the first major final of the season.
Ange Postecoglou’s side sit 10th in the Premier League after a string of mixed results, and the 2008 edition of this competition marks the last time Spurs won a trophy.
United sit even lower in the table despite their derby win last weekend, and Ruben Amorim will be aware of the merits of going far in this competition in his first season in charge.
Marcus Rashford is not in the Manchester United squad just days after he gave an interview saying he is ready for a “new challenge” away from the club.
Amorim dropped Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho from his squad to face Manchester City last weekend and although Garnacho is named on the bench, Rashford has not travelled to London.
So Rashford isn’t in the Man Utd squad tonight, as we already knew, but Garnacho is being reintegrated by starting on the bench. The United backline looks a bit different with Altay Bayindir between the sticks and then a back three of Leny Yoro, Victor Lindelof and Lisandro Martinez. Manuel Ugarte, Chrisian Eriksen and Antony also get starts further forward.
Spurs’s injury issues mean Ange Postecoglou doesn’t have loads of options, with just two changes from the XI that started the thumping win over Southampton. Yves Bissouma is in midfield instead of Lucas Bergvall, while Pedro Porro starts instead of Destiny Udogie, who picked up a knock against the Saints. That means Djed Spence switches to left-back, allowing Porro to play on the right
Tottenham XI: Forster; Porro, Dragusin, Gray, Spence; Sarr, Bissouma; Kulusevski, Maddison, Son; Solanke
Man Utd XI: Bayindir; Yoro, Lindelof, Martinez; Mazraoui, Ugarte, Eriksen, Dalot; Antony, Fernandes; Hojlund
Luke Baker19 December 2024 19:10
If it is sometimes said that there is always a crisis club in the Premier League, the warning for managers is don’t be it. As Russell Martin ran down the tunnel at St Mary’s, just as Southampton conceded a fifth goal before half-time, the relief for Ange Postecoglou was Tottenham were, for now at least, no longer that club.
Russell’s immediate departure in the wake of the 5-0 defeat, following that of Gary O’Neil of Wolves and amid Manchester City’s extraordinary collapse in the derby on Sunday, ensured a break for Spurs in the Premier League’s whirring news cycle. Even on Thursday night, when Manchester United visit Tottenham in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals, the impact of Marcus Rashford’s comments on his future and Ruben Amorim’s decision over whether to recall him and Alejandro Garnacho to his squad means there is less focus on Spurs ahead of what is their biggest game of the season so far.
Spurs can take a step closer to Wembley and a first trophy since 2008 when they host Manchester United in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals
Jamie Braidwood19 December 2024 18:40
Tottenham are set to require Archie Gray to step in at centre-back again with key defenders Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven and Ben Davies all out.
Destiny Udogie is a major doubt after limping off during that match. Djed Spence impressed against Southampton and may be required again.
Guglielmo Vicario is out, so Fraser Forster again fills in in goal.
Jamie Braidwood19 December 2024 18:25
Marcus Rashford did not travel with Manchester United’s squad on Wednesday night ahead of their Carabao Cup quarter-final against Tottenham, but Alejandro Garnacho was pictured making the trip.
Rashford was the main topic at Wednesday’s press conference, before United travelled by train, with Amorim saying he was keen to keep a player he had yet to speak to by the time he faced the media.
“It’s hard to explain to you guys what I am going to do (when I speak to him),” United’s head coach said. “I am a little bit emotional (as a person), so in the moment I will understand what to do.
“I am preparing the game and then we will see. Let’s focus on the team not individual players. That’s it.”
Rashford, who missed training on Monday through illness, now looks set to sit out the Carabao Cup quarter-final at Tottenham.
Jamie Braidwood19 December 2024 18:06
We already know everything there is to know about Marcus Rashford, a born-and-bred Manchester United fan who joined the club aged seven, with a social conscience and an eye for goal, a player with an undoubted gift who has often struggled to locate it. And yet it can sometimes feel like we don’t really know him at all.
Rashford’s revelation that he is ready for a ‘new challenge’ looks set to bring an end to a 20-year love story with Manchester United after a rollercoaster decade in the first team
Jamie Braidwood19 December 2024 17:55
Ruben Amorim on Marcus Rashford:
“He’s our player and he’s ready for the next game.
“What I want is to take the best of Marcus Rashford and the other players. I don’t talk about the future. I just talk about the present. I want the best of each of them.
“I just want to win and help the team to be better. We are better with Marcus Rashford, that’s simple. We will try different things to push Rashford to the best levels that he has shown me in the past.
“This kind of club needs big talents and he is a big talent. He just needs to perform at the highest level and that is my focus. I just want to help Marcus.”
(PA Wire)
Jamie Braidwood19 December 2024 17:25
Ruben Amorim says he would go to the manager with an issue rather than air it in the media after Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford declared he was “ready for a new challenge”.
The 27-year-old academy product has scored just 15 goals in 67 appearances in the 18 months since signing a big-money deal until 2028, with speculation over his future increasing in recent days.
Rashford was surprisingly left out of the squad for Sunday’s 2-1 win at Manchester City and revealed in an interview two days later that he was ready to end his 20-year association with United.
The forward, who missed training on Monday through illness, now looks set to sit out the Carabao Cup quarter-final at Tottenham having been absent from the group travelling to London.