Erik ten Hag gives shocking reason for substituting Marcus Rashford at half time in draw vs. Porto | OneFootball

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has given a shocking reason behind his decision to take off Marcus Rashford at the interval, as the club played out a 3-3 Europa League draw against FC Porto.

Rashford gave United the lead just seven minutes in when he came up with some fine bit of play inside the box to beat two or three Porto players before beating Diogo Costa at his near post.

Moments later, Rashford was at it again, this time setting up Rasmus Hojlund for United’s second of the match.

The Red Devils looked in control but soon lost their grip on the match when Pepe and Samu Omorodion wiped out their lead before half time.

Things got even worse for United after the restart, when Omorodion gave his side the advantage. The striker reacted quickest to a ball inside the box and made no mistake as he sent it past the reach of Andre Onana.

Luckily for United, a late-headed finish from substitute Harry Maguire spared them some blushes, with the England international making sure the spoils were shared.

The fact that Rashford did not come out of the tunnel after the break sparked concerns that the winger may have sustained an injury.

However, according to Ten Hag, Rashford is ok and the decision to withdraw him was purely down to rotation – a shocking explanation considering Rashford was clearly United’s standout performer in the opening 45 minutes.

Ten Hag told TNT Sports about Rashford, “We have to rotate.”

“On Sunday we have another hard game, we need players to be fit and fresh.”

“We had to play Garnacho. We go quickly to Villa. They have an extra day to recover.”

Ten Hag was further pressed on whether Rashford could have continued playing. The United boss refused to answer the question, simply reiterating that he needs to make sure his stars remain as fresh as possible.

The Dutchman called for fans and the media not to judge United at this moment but insisted that a verdict should be passed at the end of the campaign.

On United’s inability to hold on to leads, Ten Hag remarked, “We had three clean sheets not so long ago. We can defend very good, but we have to go back to those habits.

“Only then can you win games and when you score three times in an away game in Europe, it must be enough.”

When quizzed on whether he will get until the end of the season to try and turn the situation around, Ten Hag insisted that he and his players will continue to fight.

Feature image Octavio Passos via Getty Images

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