As former Manchester United players continue to ‘hit back’, ‘dismiss’ and ‘baulk’ at suggestions from Marcus Rashford that his boyhood club was the problem and not what they perceive to be a lack of effort on his part, we wonder just how brilliant the England international will have to be for club and country for the not-so-merry band of Red Devils pundits to side with him over the club they’re ordinarily willing to concede has become a laughing stock since their playing days.
Rashford impressed for Aston Villa on loan in the second half of last season and has three goals and five assists for Barcelona so far this term. After some all too predictable knee-jerk media nonsense claiming the La Liga giants were considering sending him back to United after his first couple of appearances, a narrative about-turn now sees Rashford’s displays as proof of the rotten core of the football club he departed in the summer.
That’s a far more difficult concept for your Roy Keanes, Gary Nevilles and Wayne Rooneys to accept though.
Upon upping sticks for Barcelona in the summer, Rashford claimed United were in “no man’s land” and that “the transition hasn’t started”, which riled Neville.
“Let’s ignore that,” Neville said. “Because I don’t want to go into Marcus Rashford comments tonight. He was there at the club for 10 years and had his opportunity to impact the club. Ruben Amorim, this year, I think will do a good job. Marcus should concentrate on Barcelona.”
Keane then questioned whether Rashford had the “intelligence” to succeed at Barcelona, asking: “Do you reckon he’s got enough football intelligence to go over there and adapt to a different league, different football, different lifestyle? Has he got that intelligence on and off the pitch to make it work?”
The evidence so far suggests that Rashford does indeed have the required football nous to thrive at Barcelona, and while we may feel the need to caveat that as a result of a career beset with false dawns and inconsistency, all of that instability coming while playing for Manchester United allows for an easy hypothesis, as drawn by the man himself in response to Thomas Tuchel’s claim that the only think preventing Rashford from being seen as a world class talent is his lack of consistency.
“For sure, consistency is a massive part of it,” Rashford said. “I feel like I have been in an inconsistent environment for a very long time, so it is even more difficult to be consistent.
“When people talk about consistency, in order to be consistent in anything, not just sport, you need consistent variables in your life and the way you train. We have just had so many changes so far in my career.”
MORE MANCHESTER UNITED COVERAGE ON F365
👉 Man Utd: Four key Red Devils stars ‘missing’ training pre-Liverpool is not as worrying as it seems…
👉 Man Utd: Jacobs reveals six key takeover details as ‘most interesting’ update reveals ‘approach’
👉 Merson reveals Liverpool transfer mistake in Man Utd prediction; Reds ‘can’t win’ title for one reason
Neither Keane nor Wayne Rooney, both captains of Manchester United, who led by example through their work ethic as well as their quality at Old Trafford, can conceive of a situation where the environment at their football club has turned so sour as to cause a player like Rashford to not be putting in the maximum amount of effort week in, week out.
“Towards the end of his time at United, there was obviously issues. He was part of the problem with the environment, especially one of the most experienced players at United,” Keane said in response to Rashford’s comments.
“He should have been setting the standards and showing new people at he club what it’s like to be a United player. But that’s been well documented. What we have to look at is he’s got this chance now with England and he deserved it.
“No doubt about his talent, he’s obviously fantastic. But the bit that would have frustrated fans is his body language, not running back or not pressing properly. That’s the things he needs to tidy up and if he does there’s no reason he can’t become a world class player.”
Rooney agreed with Keane, claiming Rashford should look at himself in the mirror rather than blaming United.
Speaking on the latest episode of The Wayne Rooney Show, he said: “I think the environment hasn’t been right but that is down to yourself.
“If you are not playing well or you get left out of the team then I think it is easier to blame the environment and whether that is right or wrong. I think that comes from how you apply yourself.
“In games we have seen with him where we know he can do more, we know he can run more – that is nothing to do with an environment.
“I might be wrong here, I really like Marcus as a lad and as a person but I think that is an easy one to throw at people.”
But none of these United legends, who won countless major trophies in an atmosphere where they all drove each other to excel and improve, experienced anything like the lethargy, mockery and bleakness that Rashford had to endure at the club. His Manchester United was their Manchester United in name only.
And they’re perfectly willing to accept that when discussing results, performances, problems with the manager, the directors and the general ethos of the club. But weirdly can’t then see how all of that upheaval might result in a footballer struggling for consistency.
It makes us wonder a) how consistent they might have been in the last decade at United rather than the two before, and b) whether any level of brilliance from Rashford at Barcelona will be enough for them to admit that United was the problem and not him.