Marcus Rashford dropped from the Manchester United squad for the derby

Marcus Rashford has been left out of the Manchester United squad to face Manchester City on Sunday.

The England striker started the 2-1 win over Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League on Thursday but was substituted early in the second half.

He did not make the trip to the Etihad after being left out of the matchday squad.

Alejandro Garnacho has also been left out of the squad for the Manchester derby. Sources told ESPN that the decision was head coach Ruben Amorim’s and that none of the players are dealing with a fitness problem, and the Portuguese coach confirmed his motives in an interview with Sky Sports before the game.

“I don’t want to send a message. It’s simply an evaluation and they know it,” he said. “The players are really, really smart. Everyone understands my decision. I have to choose. It’s just a simple choice.

“The context is difficult. We have to win games and we have a difficult situation. I pay attention to everything, the way you eat, the way you put on your clothes to go to the game. Everything. I make my assessment and then I have to decide because I have many players to choose from.

“It’s the same all the time. There is a communication after the last training which goes to WhatsApp. They receive the information. But they are fine. They had training this morning, I was there. Everything was OK. They trained really well . “

Rashford has scored three goals under new head coach Amorim. He was named on the bench for the last two Premier League games against Arsenal and Nottingham Forest, both of which ended in defeat.

Rashford has a good record against City, scoring six goals in 22 games. He scored at the Etihad last season as United lost 3-1 to Pep Guardiola’s side.