Rooney miss out for League Cup final

By Eric Patrick 


Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney was left on
 the bench for Sunday’s League Cup final against Southampton, just days after pledging his immediate future 
to the club.

The 31-year-old’s failure to start at Wembley is the latest
disappointment for Rooney, who has been marginalised by
both United and England.

Amid reports of a possible move to the lucrative Chinese
Super League, Rooney issued a statement this week
 insisting his future lies at Old Trafford, at least until the end 
of the season.

Rooney had hoped for a place in the starting line-up at
Wembley after United playmaker Henrikh Mkhitaryan 
was ruled out with an injury suffered in the midweek 
Europa League clash with Saint Etienne.

But United manager Jose Mourinho opted for Juan 
Mata,Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial as the 
attacking support for central striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Mata was included after flying back to England on 
Saturday evening following his grandfather’s funeral in Spain.

United, bidding for the first major silverware of Mourinho’s
reign, were captained by Chris Smalling in Rooney’s absence,
while world-record signing Paul Pogba started in midfield.

Southampton manager Claude Puel selected Italy forward
Manolo Gabbiadini to lead the attack in place of Shane 
Long, whose semi-final second-leg goal at Liverpool booked his team’s place in the final.

Uruguay defender Martin Caceres was on the bench as he

awaited his debut after his recent move to Southampton.