By Katie Catherall
Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney has accused members of Erik ten Hag's squad of hiding behind injuries and choosing not to feature for their team at this late stage of the season.
The former striker's criticism comes after United's 1-0 loss to Arsenal at Old Trafford, during which manager Ten Hag was forced to deal with more missing players as both Marcus Rashford and captain Bruno Fernandes were unable to make the squad.
Their absence adds to a growing list of injured United players, with Mason Mount, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Raphael Varane, Lisandro Martinez, Victor Lindelof, Tyrell Malacia and Anthony Martial all currently sidelined.
Rooney was present at Sunday's Old Trafford loss, and shared his thoughts on his former team's predicament.
Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: "There are some very good players in the squad but the performances are below par. If we look at the injuries they have picked up, some of those players can play, 100%.
"If they are [behind Ten Hag], they are not showing it very well. It is easy when you have the European Championship coming up or the FA Cup final, for players to stay out for a little bit and then get themselves ready for the final and the Euros.
"I have seen this myself over the years and I think the players are not filling themselves with any credit at the minute and the manager will take all the stick for that."
Opposite Rooney in the studio was fellow United legend Roy Keane, who admitted he would expect players to be battling back from injuries as quickly as possible.
"That's not a good sign," Keane said in response to Rooney's claims. "You hope players who are carrying injuries are desperate to get back to playing football.
"There are always a few players at every club who drag their heels with a few injuries. But other players, certainly ones I played with, they will try and knock a week or two off that.
"That's always a worry, but that goes on at lots of clubs, where they have a lack of confidence and they're out of it, and they don't rush back to be with the team."
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This article was originally published on 90min.com as Wayne Rooney accuses Man Utd players of lying about injuries.
