United Beyond Manchester

Before Manchester United’s dramatic victory over Manchester City, news broke that Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho had been dropped from Ruben Amorim’s matchday squad. It was a stunning decision criticized and questioned by fans and pundits. That was until United came away with three points.

Ruben Amorim made a clear statement. If you aren’t performing to the standards of Manchester United, you will not play, and we can win without you.

When asked about the decision, Amorim responded saying: “I’m going to say again, it was not a disciplinary thing. It was the small details. You can see the games like I see. There are some things that have to change but it’s a new life. It’s not a disciplinary thing, it’s the performance in training, the performance in games and then I have to choose players.”

“Jonny Evans did everything right, he was at home and also [he] is very important for us. If it is a disciplinary, I will say it here and it will be a bigger problem.”

“So it’s simple as that. If they train well with the talent they have, we will be so much better with both of them [Rashford and Garnacho]. But they have to work hard, [in what] they are trying to do. Today, they train really hard, so it’s a good thing. New week, new life, let’s see.”

Diogo Dalot recently spoke on the new boss’s standards at the club.

“The message was clear from him from the beginning – if you want to succeed and if you want to thrive, you have to suffer,” Dalot said.

“That’s not just in football, but in life. If you want to have success, you have to work hard and suffer.”

“If you want to succeed at this club, you have to suffer – and if you’re ready to do that with us, we’re going to be a good team. If you’re not, there’s no space for you.”

Performances on matchday and the training ground are critical in the eyes of Amorim, and he will take them into account for every game. The new manager has been around for about a month, learning about and watching his new players. No one is safe, no matter their name or talent level.

Now, it will be interesting to see how Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford respond, especially considering the transfer rumors swirling around the latter. Do they pick themselves up and work harder, or do they retreat and take an easy way out?

No matter who stays or goes, one thing is clear: Ruben Amorim will not tolerate laziness or poor form on matchday.