Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag offers stubborn response when asked about Jadon Sancho situation after win over Crystal Palace
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag was coy about attacker Jadon Sancho following his team's 3-0 EFL Cup win over Crystal Palace at Old Trafford on Tuesday (September 26).
The 23-year-old attacker hasn't featured for the club since a 30-minute cameo in the 3-2 Premier League win at home over Nottingham Forest last month.
Following a 3-1 defeat at Arsenal in the next game, Ten Hag said that Sancho wasn't in the squad because of his poor attitude in training. That drew a stern response from Sancho, who rebuked his boss on social media and said that he was being made a scapegoat.
Of course, that didn't go well with Ten Hag and United, who have frozen the attacker from the first team, including training and dining.
Sancho has taken down the controversial post but has reportedly not yet apologised to the boss for his outburst. According to The Mirror, the Englishman will remain out of the first-team environment unless he apologises to Ten Hag.
Meanwhile, following the win over Palace, Ten Hag simply said about the Sancho situation that he doesn't comment on unavailable players. The Dutchman said (as per transfer expert Fabrizio Romano):
"I do not comment about unavailable players — again, I don’t comment”.
About Sancho deleting his Instagram account, Ten Hag responded:
“I don't know, it's up to him. I don’t comment about players not available”.
The attacker's future at Old Trafford remains uncertain, and Sancho is likely to be offloaded in January if he doesn't mend fences with Ten Hag.
How Manchester United fared against Crystal Palace
In arguably one of the team's best performances of a topsy turvy season, Manchester United bossed Crystal Palace from the off. Alejandro Garnacho opened the scoring in the 21st minute before Casemiro doubled the hosts' lead six minutes later.
The Brazilian then turned provider for Anthony Martial's 55th-minute strike as Ten Hag's side won consecutive games for the first time this season. Casemiro was particularly impressive on the night, making 100 accurate passes out of a total 112, with 89% passing accuracy. Apart from his goal contributions, he also made 3 interceptions as well as 6 recoveries.
The Red Devils manufactured 14 shots on target with 69% possession, as opposed to a mere four shots by the Eagles. Last week, they snapped a three-game losing streak across competitions by winning 1-0 at Burnley in the league, their first away win of the season.
The reigning EFL Cup holders will learn their next opponent in the competition following the fourth-round draw on Wednesday (September 27). Manchester United play Palace again this weekend, in the Premier League at home on Saturday (September 30).