Alejandro Garnacho, a winger for Manchester United, was left out of the matchday squad that defeated Manchester City last month due to an act of dissension against head coach Ruben Amorim.
Thanks to late goals from Bruno Fernandes and Amad Diallo, United overcame a deficit to defeat City at the Etihad.
The removal of Garnacho and Marcus Rashford from the matchday squad, however, dominated the post-match media attention.
Following the final whistle, Amorim informed reporters that the two were excluded because they could not live up to his high expectations in a variety of areas, such as their attire, how they interacted with their teammates, and, of course, their performance on the field.
Garnacho returned to the team for the next match, which was against Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao Cup quarterfinal. Rashford, however, was left out of the squads for the following four matchdays. Despite being brought back for the most recent match against Newcastle, the England international did not play as United lost 2-0 at Old Trafford.
The Daily Mail’s Chris Wheeler has now disclosed the precise reason why Amorim passed on Garnacho for the Manchester derby.
Wheeler claims that “it has emerged that Alejandro Garnacho was fired from the Manchester United team due to a display of disapproval towards head coach Ruben Amorim.”
As the United manager was instructing the Argentina winger on the touchline prior to his arrival against Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League three days prior to the derby, Mail Sport has learned that the player seemed to turn away from Amorim and leave.
“The 20-year-old player’s representatives denied that he was being disrespectful and blamed it on a miscommunication.”
According to reports, there is no conflict between the two, and Garnacho has not been shut out, but United declined to comment, Wheeler continues. They did admit, though, that since coming over, Amorim has had high expectations for the players.
According to the report, Garnacho’s diminished role and standing since Amorim’s arrival have sparked concerns about his long-term prospects at United.
The Argentina international has often had to settle for a bench spot in the last several games. Bruno Fernandes has been shown to be preferred by Amorim over Garnacho when starting in the left 10.
Even Joshua Zirkzee, who played only 33 minutes before his humiliating retirement, was selected ahead of Garnacho against Newcastle.
