Erik ten Hag has been told to 'shut up' following his complaints over Marcus Rashford's injury - but the source of the jibe may have surprised the Manchester United manager.
The Dutchman has overseen something of a revival at Old Trafford this season, ending a run of almost six seasons without a trophy by winning the League Cup. His side have a quarter final first leg in the same competition against Seville this Thursday, and are also in the final four of the FA Cup.
But he's not been without his critics either. And after ten Hag bemoaned the fixture schedule as Rashford limped off with a groin problem, regular detractor Richard Keys reminded him he could return to Holland to coach if he didn't like the format in England.
The latest jibe to come his way though, is from a somewhat unlikely source. After guiding his Palmeiras team to the Campeonato Paulista in Brazil, Abel Fereira voiced his displeasure at his own domestic schedule, and implied ten Hag's issues were nothing in comparison.
"Football here (in Brazil) has fantastic things," he said, following a 4-0 win over Agua Santa. "But there are others that are inhumane. Nine games in a month!
"The Manchester United coach the other day complained that Rashford was injured due to the sequence of games they have. I would like to ask him or tell him: 'In these next two months, I'm going to have nine games a month. Shut up, because you don't know what you're saying'."
The extent of Rashford's injury is yet to be revealed, but United officials were said to be fearing the worst as he headed for a scan on Monday. After helping create the crucial second goal for Anthony Martial on Saturday, the England man pulled up minutes later and was in clear discomfort as he hobbled down the tunnel.
Immediately afterwards, an irate ten Hag told the media: "We have to wait. He doesn't look well. This was avoidable. All science and research tell you players need a certain time to recover. It is also part of the schedule that we are now finding ourselves in this situation and now we can only pray he is not dropping off."
Sandwiched between the two Seville games is a trip to Nottingham Forest on Sunday, with the FA Cup semi final against Brighton coming up on April 23. Despite the injury blow, United have at least been boosted by two key returns - with Christian Eriksen returning to fitness and Casemiro back from suspension.
