Colombian striker Radamel Falcao was left out of Manchester United's starting XI against West Brom on Monday after suffering from jet-lag, according to manager Louis van Gaal.
Falcao, 28, missed the World Cup this summer with a serious knee injury but played and scored for his country in the most recent international break last week during a 3-0 win against El Salvador on Friday and 1-0 win over Canada on Tuesday night, both at the Red Bull Arena in New York.
Van Gaal says @FALCAO - who is on the bench - has jetlag after international duty in South America #WBAMUN
- Premier League (@premierleague) October 20, 2014
In the absence of the suspended Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie (who also played in midweek for Netherlands) has been handed a starting place, with Van Gaal saying it is because he arrived back at his club earlier -- with Falcao reportedly returning to his homeland from New York first.
Van Gaal explains striker selection: "RvP came back [from internationals] two days before Falcao, who was in South America. He had jetlag."
- Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 20, 2014
Falcao will be on the bench as United look to turn around their poor away form that has seen them fail to win in five games.