THE explanation behind Marcus Rashford’s shock Manchester United axe has been revealed.
Rashford, 27, scored three in Ruben Amorim’s first two Premier League games in charge.
He grabbed the opener two minutes in against Ipswich before helping himself to a double as United thrashed Everton 4-0.
But then Amorim dumped Rashford out of the starting XI for the defeats to Arsenal and Nottingham Forest.
And he has not featured in the Premier League since.
Rashford was left out of matchday squads entirely against Manchester City, Bournemouth and Wolves – plus the Carabao Cup exit at Tottenham – then returned as an unused sub against Newcastle on December 30.
Tellingly, Amorim refused to bring the forward on despite United trailing 2-0 from the 19th minute.
It means the academy graduate’s only start since December 1 was away at Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League and he has played 118 minutes of football from a possible 720 under Amorim.
And his prolonged absence looks set to extend with Rashford missing training due to illness ahead of tomorrow’s trip to Anfield.
Now there is talk of a possible transfer exit away from Old Trafford, especially after Rashford admitted he was open to a “new challenge”.
But according to The Athletic, there is a specific reason behind Amorim’s sudden change of tune.
It is claimed in the aftermath of the win over Everton, Amorim was told Rashford had been on a night out in Manchester on Friday, November 29 – less than 48 hours before the Toffees clash on Sunday, December 1.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”Former Man Utd star slams Rashford and says he should move to MLS ” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6366450598112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]The new manager has a strict rule on players not going out to bars so close to matches.
When he spoke to Rashford about the matter, the £325,000-a-week star reportedly denied the suggestions and told his gaffer he had been misinformed.
Nonetheless, Amorim dropped Rashford.
[authenticated-scripts src=”%3Cscript%20class%3D%22palin-poll%22%20src%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thesun.co.uk%2Fpollingwidgets%2Fv3%2Fwidget.js%3Fquestion_id%3D101416%26game%3Dpolling%22%3E%3C%2Fscript%3E” type=”embedded” width=”100″ /]Then two weeks later, Rashford was said to be slacking in United’s final training session before the Manchester derby on December 15 – with again claims he had been out on the Friday before a Sunday match.
Again, Rashford’s representatives strenuously rebuffed the reports and there is a feeling within his camp that the England man and local hero gets extra scrutiny on his social life than team-mates.
A year ago, Rashford phoned in sick for training on a Friday – two days before facing Newport in the FA Cup – and it transpired he had been on a bender in Belfast.
On the Monday after the cup clash, for which Rashford was axed, Sir Dave Brailsford addressed the United squad in a pre-arranged meeting – but then spoke privately with Rashford for 90 minutes.
The attacker also angered Erik ten Hag in December 2022 by oversleeping and arriving late to a team meeting, prompting him to be dropped to the bench.
Then in November 2023, Ten Hag slammed Rashford’s decision to go out partying for his birthday after a 3-0 hammering by rivals City as “unacceptable”.
The 2024-25 season started off badly for the 60-cap international with two of his best mates at the club, Jadon Sancho and Aaron Wan-Bissaka, both leaving.
He has chipped in with four Prem goals and an assist and has improved his running stats – now averaging 10.2km and 21.33 sprints per 90 minutes of action.
His Europa League goal and two in the Carabao Cup take his overall United tally to 138 – 15th on the all-time list and now just seven behind Cristiano Ronaldo in joint 13th.
Whether he adds many to that list, though, remains to be seen.
Only clubs in Saudi Arabia would realistically be able to match his mammoth wages – but he has turned down three bumper offers already.
SunSport revealed a swap deal with Victor Osimhen of Napoli is being discussed after Juventus declined the option to strike a deal.
The MLS remains another possible exit route should he fail to win over his new manager and regain his starting spot following his recent exile.
Amorim’s current stance to sideline Rashford has been given the support of the boardroom hierarchy.
The ex-Sporting chief, though, insists the ball is in the player’s court to get himself back into contention and reignite his United career – but only if he is willing to prove he is up for the challenge.
Amorim said: “It depends more on him than me.
“He has to want it really, really bad.
“He’s here. He’s ready to play if I decide.”
