Adnan Januzaj punished by Louis van Gaal 'for showboating' in Manchester United Under-21 match

Belgium international's limited first-team chances this year reportedly related to incident earlier this year

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Adnan Januzaj is being punished by Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal for showboating in an Under-21 match, it's claimed.

The Belgium international has hardly featured this year and reports today offer a suggestion as to why the forward is being frozen out of the first-team picture.

It's claimed that Januzaj took part in a private dual with team-mate Andreas Pereira during an Under-21 fixture against Sunderland on January 25. The pair both tried, unsuccessfully, to score directly from corners.

Staff were reportedly unimpressed and told Van Gaal of the incident. Since that match, Januzaj has featured in the first-team just once - as an 80th minute substitute.

It's been a dreadful season for Januzaj, who a couple of years ago was considered one of the brightest prospects in world football. Van Gaal permitted the 21-year-old to go on loan to Borussia Dortmund for the season, but after failing to make an impact in the Bundesliga, returned to Old Trafford. Aside from that appearance against Arsenal, Januzaj has played just one other game for Manchester United, a four-minute substitute appearance against Southampton.