Marcus Rashford's future at Man Utd uncertain (Image: Getty Images)
Wayne Rooney was left red-faced following Ruben Amorim's decision to bench Marcus Rashford for Manchester United's derby match against Manchester City. Rashford's recent performances stand in stark contrast to his impressive tally of 30 goals in the 2022/23 season under former manager Erik ten Hag.
Although he initially flourished under new boss Amorim, scoring the first goal of his tenure against Ipswich Town and scoring twice against Everton, Rashford's form has since dipped. The England international was relegated to the bench for defeats against Arsenal and Nottingham Forest before being left out of the squad altogether for the crucial clash at the Etihad.
Amorim justified his decision as a way to “push him harder”, hinting at poor performances in training, but Rooney's earlier prediction that Rashford could surpass his own United goals record now looks increasingly more ill-advised and premature.
“He’s in a privileged position when he plays for Manchester United,” Rooney told TNT Sports in March. “I've said it before, he's the only player I really thought could get my goalscoring record. I hope he does because he's a Manchester boy, but he has to demonstrate a certain consistency.
“Of course he has to find some form and consistency and become a leader of this team. I don't think Marcus is that type of player; I don't think he's a leader, and sometimes his body language doesn't work. doesn't look good from this point of view.
“For me, I look at Casemiro, Bruno [Fernandes] as captain. These are players who should take advantage of that from Marcus because sometimes you need your teammates to get the best out of you as well.”
However, Rashford's journey to surpass Rooney's 253 goals is looking increasingly difficult, with Rashford having scored 138 goals for United so far in all competitions, the Mirror reports.
Rashford was left out of the team that beat Man City (Image: Offside via Getty Images)
Reports also indicate that Rashford may be unhappy at United, with Sky Sports revealing that the 27-year-old has not impressed new manager Amorim in training sessions and could leave in January, either on loan or permanently.
Premier League legend Alan Shearer has spoken out on Rashford's situation, sharing his concerns with the Mirror: “I don't know him personally. I saw him three years ago scoring 30 goals a season , so it's there, but we haven't seen it anywhere near that for a long time now.
“There are only two guys who can answer, his manager and him with his attitude, his performances and his belief. His performances haven't been there for a while; he's gone from there to there in so little time, then clearly something is wrong.
“I don't know why he went from there three years ago to where he is today, but I don't see a happy player. It would be wrong for me to speculate. I don't know what is happening around him.
Source: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1989902/rashford-man-utd-rooney-shearer-amorim