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Erik ten Hag has hit back at Wayne Rooney's comments that some of Manchester United players who were seemingly injured were actually fit enough to play but refused to do so to avoid the heat. The United manager retaliated saying all of his injured players were  "desperate" to be involved. 

The Dutch manager has been without his top players throughout the season, with the likes of Bruno Fernandes, Marcus Rasford and Harry Maguire facing a race against time in order to be fit for the Wembley FA Cup final against Manchester City. 

“No. You have to see here in Carrington [at the ­training centre] the players are ­desperate to play. I see Licha [Lisandro] ­Martínez, I see Bruno [Fernandes] – he did a ­fitness test on Sunday to play. ­[Marcus] Rashford did everything he could do. He trained and tried to train last week but he didn’t make it," Ten Hag said. 

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"Players are desperate to play, they want to be in the right shape. You see also Victor Lindelöf and Raphaël Varane, they are training to make themselves available for the [FA Cup] final. They do what they can do.”

What did Rooney say?

Notably, after the match against Arsenal where United suffered a 0-1 loss, following a first-half goal from Leandro Trossard, Rooney made the sensational claim. 

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The former United captain said: "As we look at the injuries they've picked up, some of those players can play, 100 per cent."

"When you have the European Championship coming up and an FA Cup final, it's easy for players to stay out of it a little bit, get back for the final and make sure they're ready for the European Championship. I've seen it myself over the years," added Rooney. 

Rooney, who was recently fired as Birmingham City manager, said the brunt of players pulling out of the matches will be then faced by Ten Hag who has to square up against the media. 

"The players who are injured are not filling themselves in any credit at the minute. The manager is going to take all the stick for that."

Also read | ‘They don’t have knowledge’: Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag slams pundits criticising him

United under Ten Hag have been playing a poor brand of football, not normally associated with the club. Though injuries have ravaged the United squad, there are clear tactical lapses present in the squad that boils down to Ten Hag and his coaching philosophy. 

The United manager will have the opportunity to redeem himself as his side squares up against Manchester City in the FA Cup final, later this month. 

(With inputs from agencies)