Marcus Rashford’s status in the Manchester United dressing room has reportedly been ‘tarnished’ by his antics earlier in the campaign. The forward skipped training last month after a late-night bender in Belfast saw him to call in sick the following day ahead of his side’s clash with Newport in the FA Cup.
Rashford has come under significant criticism so far this season, failing to hit the heights of his 2022/23 campaign under Erik ten Hag. The versatile forward has been linked with a move away from Old Trafford as a result, with Paris Saint-Germain among his suitors.
The 26-year-old looked to silence his doubters over the weekend when opening the scoring against Manchester City with a stunning 25-yeard strike, though he still does not appear to have won over the entire support of even those within the Red Devils dressing room.
According to the Daily Mail, Rashford’s senior figure status has been ‘tarnished’ by his tequila-fuelled night out on Belfast, despite the England international promptly apologising to Erik ten Hag after it emerged that it was the reason for his absence from training the following day.
Some United stars felt ‘let down’ by the behaviour of the No. 10 and have taken a ‘dim view’ on the matter, despite his almost-instant return to the first team. Ten Hag has insisted that the issue is behind the team publicly though, with the Dutchman focusing on guiding the club to the Champions League.
The Red Devils have endured a shaky season so far, with injuries and poor form meaning that the club sit in sixth place in the table and 11 points outside of the top four. As a result, several key figures in the club are starting to feel the heat, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s recent comments on a shakeup at the Theatre of Dreams only intensifying the situation.