Cape Town — A civil war within the squad threatens to derail Manchester United’s stuttering season, according to reports in the United Kingdom.
United were on the wrong side of a 4-1 hammering at the hands of rivals and Premier League champions Manchester City on Sunday, denting their hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League.
Now, reports claim the players in the squad are not on the same page, there is resentment over Cristiano Ronaldo’s failure to attend the derby, and star striker Marcus Rashford wants to leave.
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The Manchester Evening News report that a number of the squad’s players have been left dismayed by interim manager Ralf Rangnick’s selections.
According to the report, Eric Bailly and Rashford are two players who have grown disenchanted with live under the German, with others mocking his CV and training methods.
The main reason for Bailly’s unhappiness is Rangnick’s loyalty to struggling captain Harry Maguire. The Ivory Coast international has featured only seven times this season, and could only make the bench on Sunday despite Raphael Varane missing the game after testing positive for Covid-19.
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Maguire was once again unconvincing on Sunday, and was at fault for Manchester City and Kevin De Bruyne’s second goal on the day.
Harry Maguire could've just put the ball out for a corner?
Why on earth did he dummy the ball here? Shocking!!! pic.twitter.com/NmkROmzrs9
— SlyBet (@OddsXchange) March 6, 2022
There were further reports after Sunday’s game that the players were upset that Cristiano Ronaldo decided to fly out to Portugal instead of attending the derby.
The Portuguese superstar missed the game due to a hip flexor injury, and instead of attending the game and offering some moral support to his teammates, he flew out to his homeland, leaving his teammates perplexed.
According to The Athletic, the United squad felt his presence around the matchday squad would have been beneficial, such is his influence and standing around the club.
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Rashford, who has been at the club since he was seven, is said to be considering his options after finding himself down the pecking order since the arrival of Rangnick.
The 24-year-old England international’s contract runs until the end of next season, but the club could be forced to offload him this season to avoid losing him for nothing.
Rashford is said to be disillusioned with life at Old Trafford after finding himself behind Anthony Elanga in the pecking order.
Rangnick will hope the club can iron out their issues ahead of their next fixtures, which sees them welcome Tottenham Hotspur and Atletico Madrid to Old Trafford on Saturday and next week Tuesday.
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