Manchester United coach Ruben Amorim has insisted that Marcus Rashford's return to the squad is evidence of his repeated insistence that the door remains open for the striker.
After being excluded from the final four teams amid a public admission of his desire for a “new challenge”, Rashford returned to the bench For Monday's meeting with Newcastle United.
His return coincides with the suspension of captain Bruno Fernandes, while United is also missing the suspended Manuel Ugarte and the injured Mason Mount, and Amorim admitted that his limited options contributed to the decision to call up Rashford.
“Selection and we have a lot of players abroad,” Amorim explained when asked why Rashford returned. “As I said, every week I select players for the opponent and he was available for selection. This time he is here.”
Matthijs de Ligt and Joshua Zirkzee have also been restored to the squad united The starting line-up, with Amorim admitting he hopes to counter Newcastle's potent threat.
He explained: “At first I made changes because of training, and now it's about winning matches. I always try to win matches.” “The team is at the same level, so I try to exploit the opponent’s characteristics.”
