Gary Neville questioned Ralf Rangnick’s treatment of Marcus Rashford after the English forward was left out against Leicester.
With Cristiano Ronalo and Edinson Cavani both ruled out of the match, Rangnick opted to play Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba in the central roles instead, leaving Rashford on the bench. United were held to a 1-1 draw against the Foxes at Old Trafford, which further dents their top-four ambitions.
It’s been a difficult few months for Rashford who has been badly lacking in form, something Neville does not feel will be helped by the decision not to start even in the absence of many other options.
“I was struggling a little bit with it before the game without the centre forward,” Neville told Sky Sports.
“That’s killed Marcus Rashford today, not playing in that team.
“I know he’s been poor, I know he’s lacked confidence but for Cristiano Ronaldo to pull out this morning and for Paul Pogba to go in and change the system of play and the way in which the game has been approached and not just put Marcus Rashford in as a striker as a straight swap having trained with the players the last 10 days - overall, there’s too many things at this club that are uncertain.
“Everbody’s watching, it’s Manchester United. There’s no hiding place.”
Rangnick explained his decision not to start Rashford and why he then brought the 24-year-old, referencing the struggles he has been having.
“The question was whether to start with Marcus or with Bruno as false nine plus Paul Pogba in midfield,” Rangnick said.
“We still needed a goal after 60 minutes, we decided to go for a central striker.
“It’s obvious that Marcus is not full of confidence and it’s a difficult time for him.”
