Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has seemingly aimed a thinly-veiled swipe at rival manager Pep Guardiola over the latter's controversial decision to only include six substitutes during a recent Premier League game.
Guardiola was widely questioned for leaving an open space on the bench during Manchester City's 1-1 draw with Burnley earlier this month, with critics suggesting that he should have used the opportunity to give a youngster a taste of a first-team matchday.
Mourinho appeared to take a similar view by including youngster Ethan Hamilton in his squad alongside fellow academy product Angel Gomes for this evening's FA Cup clash with Huddersfield Town - just a day after he was in action for the youth team - and Mourinho believes that it will be a useful experience for the 19-year-old.
When asked about 'other managers' who had left a space on the bench, Mourinho told BT Sport: "I think it's a beautiful moment for the players, even if they don't play.
"Gomes did play for us a couple of times in the Premier League and the FA Cup. Of course I have on the bench four senior players ready to play without any question mark in relation to experience and the fact he played yesterday.
"I'm not going to play Hamilton but I would prefer to have him and I'm pretty sure he's happy to be here."
United are bidding to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup for the fourth season in a row.
