Manchester United manager, Jose Mourinho, has stated that full-back Luke Shaw needs to work "better and better" after he left him out of the squad for the Europa League clash with St Etienne.
Has to wait for his chance
Shaw has struggled to return to the side since his serious injury, having struggled for form and fitness with a number of niggling injuries seen him out of action until the end of January.
He hasn't appeared since his supposed return to fitness, with the young full-back been an unused substitute in the 2-1 win over Blackburn Rovers a game many will have expected him to be involved in.
The 21-year-old's distance from the squad increased, with the full-back not involved in the traveling 20-man squad and Mourinho stated that he needs to work harder to be involved.
"He stayed behind in Manchester," Mourinho confirmed to manutd.com. "Because I'm playing with Daley Blind, with Marcos Rojo, with Matteo Darmian."
"All of them are playing the way I like a full-back to play,” the coach explained to the press conference. “Luke has to wait for his chance and work better and better, knowing I give nothing for free."
"When I give something to the players," the 54-year-old stressed. "It's expensive for them - it's not cheap."
Following in his example
Shaw hasn't been the first player that has faced exclusion from Mourinho's side, with another example been the winger Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
The Armenian was barely involved at the beginning of the season, but has become one of the key members in Mourinho's side and stated that Shaw should follow in his example.
"Potentially he has many things that I like but one thing is potentially," the former Chelsea man stated. "Another thing is on the pitch to express all the qualities that I like a player to express.”
“And he has to keep working," Mourinho concluded. "Like Mkhitaryan did for a long time.”
Manchester United will take on St Etienne in the last 32 of the Europa League at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard on Wednesday, February 22 with kick-off at 5pm GMT.