Luke Shaw is pleased Erik ten Hag dropped Marcus Rashford for the Wolves game because it shows that everybody at Manchester United has to follow team rules.
Rashford was left on the substitutes’ bench for United’s trip to Molineux in Saturday’s early kick-off in the Premier League. Before kick-off, Ten Hag said the decision was due to "internal disciplinary" reasons.
The 25-year-old was brought off the bench at half-time with the game goalless and continued his excellent form by netting the crucial goal in a 1-0 win. Rashford, who has now scored three goals in three United games since the World Cup, explained after the match that he was dropped after turning up late for a team meeting.
Shaw believes Ten Hag was right to drop Rashford, with the Dutchman’s discipline a clear difference to previous regimes. “I think at a top club it has to be like that, people can’t do whatever they want,” he told BT Sport.
“Maybe that’s been part of the problem in the past with people getting away with silly little things but the manager takes that into consideration. You see today, if you’re not keeping the standards high then you won’t play.”
Rashford has been in exceptional form for United this season, with his impressive solo strike against Wolves moving him onto 12 goals in 2021/22. He also scored three times for England at the World Cup and will be crucial to United’s chances of finishing in the top four.
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“I think he’s in a good way at the moment, extremely confident, positive, happy and it’s nice to see,” Shaw added. “Everyone knows the quality he’s got, he’s class and he can be one of the best in the world if he keeps going.”
Speaking to BT Sport after picking up the Player of the Match award, Rashford confirmed his current mindset. “I’m in a good place, I’m just pleased with the way we’re progressing,” he said.
“In the past we can lose that game or definitely draw it, even with scoring one goal they put a lot of pressure on us, they stepped up to us and David had to make an important save at the end and a good save from a free-kick. We’ve always found it difficult here, win and we managed to do that today.”
On the disciplinary issue, he added: “Yeah it’s team rules, I think it’s a mistake that can happen but [I'm] disappointed not to play but I understand the decision. Ultimately, I’m happy we managed to win the game anyway so we can draw a line under it and move on. I was a little bit late for a meeting, I overslept, it can happen.”
