Soccer:Wayne Rooney was conspicuous by his absence as his current Manchester United side took on former club Everton at Goodison Park.
The England international, who has had to cope with revelations about his private life all week, was not on the team coach when it arrived at the ground an hour and 15 minutes before kick-off and his name did not appear on the team sheet.
Rooney was reportedly at the team's hotel in Manchester last night and there was a suggestion he may have travelled independently but Alex Ferguson's selection dispelled that theory.
In addition to the newspaper headlines the 24-year-old has generated over the last few days there had been a lot of talk prior to the game about him returning to his old stomping ground.
However, the hostility shown to the former Toffees star has mellowed slightly in recent years since his move to Old Trafford and Ferguson gave no indication on Friday that he was planning to leave out the striker.
He would not comment, however, on the player's personal circumstances. "Let's put it to bed straight away. I am not discussing any of my players' personal lives," he said at his pre-match press conference.
Rooney and wife Coleen issued a statement last night asking for privacy in the wake of the allegations.
"The last six days have been extremely painful for us and for our families," the couple said in a statement. They added that it was impossible for them "to attempt to resolve any issues in the current media glare".
Ferguson has not been afraid to leave out his big names in the past, famously dropping David Beckham after growing tired of his off-field lifestyle. Just before kick-off the manager said he left Rooney out to spare him the abuse he usually receives at Goodison Park.
"We made a decision simply because he gets terrible abuse here. We don't want to subject him to that," Ferguson said.
However, leaving out Rooney for that reason is most unlike Ferguson, who usually has absolute faith in his players to cope with what is thrown at them - sometimes literally - as United players.