Alejandro Ganacho was left out because of his poor form 


Manchester United boss Erik Ten Hag has disclosed that Alejandro Garnacho was dropped from the squad after the opening two games of the season because his performances were “not good enough”

Garnacho was in the starting lineup for games against Wolves and Tottenham in August but  then wasn’t included in the side for five games before returning to the side with a goal in the 3-0 win over Crystal Palace in a Carabao Cup fixture on Tuesday. 

Garnacho opened the scoring for the Red Devils in the 21st minute. He got at the end of Dalot’s precise low cross to find the back of the net for the very first time this season. Ten Hag was happy with the 19 year old’s performance and has urged the forward to keep improving.  

"You have seen at the start of the season we played him, his contribution was not good enough," said Ten Hag.

"You see always that he is a threat in the game even when he is not playing that well. He has to learn when he does his job in defending. He will always have his moment and he will always be decisive because he has great qualities.

"I want to see like today, he is entering the box in the right spot to finish.

"I think it is quite normal for a player of his age that there is space for a lot of improvement. Everyone likes him, the fans like him, the team likes him, I like him, but we also have to demand from him and push him because he can act on a very high level but he has to show it every day."

Besides Garnacho, Ten Hag also gave starts to Mason Mount, Raphael Varane and Harry Maguire as United powered their way to the fourth round of Carabao Cup. 

Sancho could again find no place in the side, having been banished from the first team training following his public outburst on Social media. 

Sofyan Amrabat was handed his full debut after coming on as a late substitute against Burnley on Saturday and was impressive despite not starting in his natural position. He played as a left back in the absence of Sergio Reguilon. 

“Sofyan is a player, and that is one of the reasons we signed him, where the team needs him, he will play and he can play in more positions," said Ten Hag.

"Every player has his best position but he gives a certain dynamic in the game. We have seen today but also for him and many players, we just started.

"That process was a little bit interrupted by the many injuries we have because when you can play a long time with the same team then you get routines, the players learn each other and it's more automatic.

"You see Mason, Amrabat, you see also others, they can contribute to our game and they will do."