Luke Shaw’s career at Manchester United appears all but over after the defender was snubbed for the side’s 2-0 League Cup win against Swansea City.
The 22-year-old was tipped to start at the Liberty Stadium but was instead an 87th minute substitute for Anthony Martial.
Shaw has been battling back from an ankle problem but has been fit for the last six weeks and still only has one appearance to his name this term.
The defender was afforded 45 minutes against Burton Albion in the last round but was completely overlooked in Wales and it raises strong question marks about his future at the club.
To make matters worse for Shaw, he could only look on as youngster Axel Tuanzebe strengthened his case to become a first-team regular with a fine performance in south Wales.
Tuanzebe, 19, was handed his debut against Wigan last season but, like Shaw, has been starved of opportunities this term.
The youngster’s instead spent most of his time with the club’s U23s and impressed coaches when he’s trained with the first-team at United’s Carrington training ground.
Tuanzebe was the left centre-back in a back three for United and looked more than comfortable stepping up against Premier League opposition.
Jesse Lingard gave United the lead in the first-half after a neat flick from Marcus Rashford and he grabbed his second of the game after the interval following great work from Tuanzebe.
Stepping out of defence, Tuanzebe burst past two Swansea players and sent a ball out to Matteo Darmian, who found Lingard in the middle to head in for 2-0.
Shaw could only watch on from the bench and perhaps thought the second goal would be his cue to come on. It wasn’t. Mourinho instead looked to Romelu Lukaku and Nemanja Matic, two players he needs fit for Saturday’s clash against Tottenham.
It underlined how far Shaw has fallen down the pecking order at Old Trafford that Mourinho’s willing to risk his star men in a clash United had all but won.
Shaw is out of contract at the end of the season but United are expected to trigger a 12-month extension. On the face of things it buys the defender more time to impress but in reality it is a move that looks designed to get a fee for him this summer.
Shaw’s route back into the first-team looked difficult before United’s win at Swansea but, with Tuanzebe impressing, he’s even further behind now.
MORE : Jose Mourinho threatens to drop Manchester United stars for Tottenham Hotspur clash
Share this with