Man Utd boss Ten Hag explains why he treated Rashford differently to Sancho

31 January 2024 , 22:30

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Erik ten Hag explains why he treated Marcus Rashford differently to Jadon Sancho (Image: Getty Images)

Erik ten Hag has told Marcus Rashford he has to take responsibility for himself following his boozy Belfast trip.

Rashford returns to Manchester United's squad for Thursday's Premier League trip to Wolves, after apologising to Ten Hag and his team-mates for his latest transgression. The England striker was dropped for Sunday's FA Cup win at Newport after calling in sick for training on Friday and Saturday, following his Belfast bender.

United boss Ten Hag said: “He has taken responsibility. So, case closed. In football, you need discipline and that is on the pitch, but also off the pitch, because there's a line between.

“Every player knows this, every professional knows this and knows what is required. I didn’t pick Marcus on Sunday. Now we draw the line from that point and we move on.”

Ten Hag said Rashford was treated differently to Jadon Sancho – exiled from the squad before being sent out on loan – because the latter chose to go public over his grievance with his boss.

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Rashford has been welcomed back into the fold by Ten Hag, while Sancho was exiled (Getty Images)

After being omitted from the squad for a match against Arsenal in September due to what Ten Hag said was down to his performance in training, Sancho tweeted: "Please don't believe everything you read! I will not allow people saying things that are completely untrue. I have conducted myself in training very well this week. I believe there are other reasons for this matter that I won't go into.

"I have been a scapegoat for a long time which isn't fair! All I want to do is play football with a smile on my face and contribute to my team. I respect all decisions that are made by the coaching staff, I play with fantastic players... I will continue to fight for this badge no matter what!"

“We can sort out everything internally,” said Ten Hag on the Rashford situation. “Jadon chose to go public. It has nothing to do with the relationship between me and Marcus.”

United goalkeeper Andre Onana will be back at Wolves after returning to the squad following Cameroon's exit from the Africa Cup of Nations.

David McDonnell