Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has offered his support to Jadon Sancho after Gareth Southgate snubbed the winger for the England squad heading to Qatar.
Southgate named three United players in his final list: Marcus Rashford, Luke Shaw and Harry Maguire.
England’s coaching staff apparently didn’t think Sancho had done enough to guarantee a place on the plane.
The Englishman has recently missed a few games with the Red Devils due to illness and it remains to be seen if he will be available for selection against Fulham.
Speaking to the press ahead of the Fulham match, Ten Hag sympathized with Sancho but alluded to the fact that he understands Southgate’s reasoning for not calling up the United winger.
Ten Hag told reporters: “He [Sancho] he had very good performances and was going in a good direction”.
“But the last few weeks he battled the disease. So it’s normal that you don’t get the nomination for it [the World Cup].”
“Each coach will take only fit players to the World Cup.”
When Sancho returns, he will have a fight on his hands to return to the starting eleven.
In his absence, Alejandro Garnacho has become the center of attention and has opted to be a regular under the direction of Ten Hag.
The return of Anthony Martial also means Marcus Rashford is likely to return to the left, which is Sancho’s preferred position.
Rashford is in excellent form and more than deserves to keep his place in the side. On the other hand, Ten Hag’s words suggest that Sancho’s drop in form was caused by illness and, in hindsight, he perhaps should have been dropped from the team sooner.
Hopefully, Sancho takes advantage of the World Cup break to rediscover himself and come back strong after the tournament.
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