The Marcus Rashford situation looks to have no end in sight despite Manchester United showing signs of life again without their academy product.
Manchester United earned another creditable result without Marcus Rashford, drawing 2-2 at Anfield against Liverpool after winning at Man City earlier.
Granted, they lost four games in between those two but not many would have thought that Rashford was the only missing link in those losses to turn them into wins.
The reality remains that Rashford remains far removed from Amorim’s plans, even when he does make the squad as he did against Newcastle.
David Ornstein has now shared the latest on the forward future at Old Trafford as the January transfer window ticks over every day.
David Ornstein on Marcus Rashford at Man Utd
Andy Mitten’s claim about Rashford was the one where it looked like it was curtains for the player at Old Trafford but he made the squad vs Newcastle immediately after.
He missed the Liverpool game and Amorim said it was due to illness but not many would have bet on Rashford starting, or being involved in that one even if he was available.
In fact, there are conspiracy theories floating around that Rashford is not ill at all, and Amorim said so to end the circus around the player which would have happened had Amorim said he just didn’t select the player.
David Ornstein spoke to NBC before the Liverpool game and gave the lowdown on the whole situation, calling it, concerningly, a “major problem”.
He said: “Marcus Rashford is a major problem at Man Utd. He did come into the squad for the Newcastle game but that was because due to a lack of bodies.
“Man Utd are open to his exit. Rashford, judging by his public comments, is open to it as well. That is potentially a very sorry ending for a homegrown boy.
“Things have gone wrong clearly. Amorim wiped the slate clean for all players and judged them by the same standard on and off the pitch. He clearly feels Rashford’s training performance and maybe his attitude is not up to scratch.
“In January, his exit will be very difficult. He earns in excess of £325k/week. I’m told that reports of offers being turned down from Saudi Arabia are not accurate. Saudi have pushed back on that.
“There are reports of a swap deal with Victor Osimhen and Napoli but that will be so complicated. The door is still open at United but it will be so difficult.”
Ruben Amorim is being backed over Marcus Rashford
Ornstein added that Amorim retains full faith of the board to deal with the Marcus Rashford situation as he sees fit, which should empower the manager.
The culture of player power at Old Trafford is one that has needed nipping in the bud for a long time now so that move is long overdue.
Rashford, for his part, needs to understand that his only way out of this situation, at least a positive one, is by playing well for the rest six months.
As things stand, teams he would want to join are not interested and potentially interested teams wouldn’t be ones he would want to join.
The wages are a huge stumbling block and he’s well within his rights to sit at Carrington and collect his checks but that will come at a cost of his professional career.
In the meantime, he is sure to remain a widely asked question before and after every game, a circus that Amorim can certainly do without!
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