Jesse Lingard has responded to Ralf Rangnick's comments and given his own version of why he will not face Middlesbrough tomorrow.
The 29-year-old midfielder had a move away from Manchester United blocked on transfer deadline day, amid interest from Newcastle.
During his pre-match press conference earlier today Ralf Rangnick explained the decision behind the England international remaining at Old Trafford and revealed Lingard had asked for a break — and would not be in the squad against Boro.
"Three weeks ago, Jesse didn't want to leave," Rangnick said.
"Then he changed his mind. I had a chat with him 10 days ago and I could fully understand why he wanted to leave, to get game-time for his future and the World Cup.
"And I said to him at the time if he finds a club he would like to play for and the club find a solution with our club I would let him go and allow him to leave.
"Obviously, with all the developments in the last couple of days, things changed a little bit. On the other hand, we also had no agreement with any other club and we had to take a final decision with the board, and we decided to rather keep Jesse until the end of the season."
Rangnick went on to explain that, although the Mason Greenwood situation was a factor behind Lingard staying, United were also unable to find a suitable agreement for the academy graduate.
He added: "Jesse asked me and the club if we could give him a couple of days off just to clear up his mind. He will be back in the group next Monday, back for training and then be part of the regular squad again."
This evening (Thursday) Lingard has taken to social media to claim that he was offered time off by the club, rather than ask for it himself. He pledged he would be available when "called upon" by United.
In a tweet, he said: "The club advised me to have time off due to personal reasons!
"But my headspace is clear and I’ll always be professional when called upon and give 100 percent."
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