Jamie Carragher dubbed Eric Bailly's suggestion that Manchester United often favour English players as "absolute nonsense" - before slamming the defender himself.
Bailly is currently on loan at Ligue 1 side Marseille after sealing his temporary exit from Old Trafford in the summer. The Ivory Coast international has admitted he feels as if the foreign players at the club weren't always given as many opportunities and claimed he hoped new boss Erik ten Hag could rectify this alleged issue.
"The club should avoid favouring English players and give everyone a chance," Bailly claimed. "[The club should] encourage competition in the dressing room, not just look out for some. I've always had the feeling that the national player was prioritised.
"That doesn't happen at Chelsea or other big Premier League clubs.
"Some people take it for granted that they are going to start, and that weakens the team. Luckily, Ten Hag has a lot of character and I hope he can change that dynamic."
It was the former Ajax boss, now in the Old Trafford hot-seat, who oversaw Bailly's departure having deemed him surplus to requirements this term, following the arrival of Lisandro Martinez.
But Bailly's comments saw Carragher let rip, taking to Twitter to write: "Absolute nonsense, Eric Bailly has been injured consistently and poor when he has played. That’s why they keep buying players to replace him! Harry Maguire is a better player."
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Bailly struggled with injuries on a regular basis following his £30million arrival at United from Villarreal in the summer of 2016.
As a result, he found first-team minutes hard to come by in recent campaigns, with the likes of Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof and more recently both Raphael Varane and Martinez signed since his initial arrival.
Last term, under both Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick, Bailly was handed just three Premier League starts all season - one of which saw him net an own goal in the Manchester derby.
Bailly is hoping to impress at Marseille with regular action, but has a contract at United until the summer of 2024, after inking an extension last year. It also includes the option of adding a further year should either party wish to.
