Gary Neville suggests that individuals within the Manchester United dressing room are engaging in conspiracy and backdoor briefings against Marcus Rashford, instead of offering him support.
Rashford was left out of United’s squad for the FA Cup trip to Newport last weekend, citing illness that prevented his participation in training leading up to their 4-2 victory.
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However, it later surfaced that Rashford was out partying in Belfast until late on Thursday night while visiting his friend Ro-Shaun Williams. The 26-year-old has been fined £650,000 and is required to train alone.
Erik ten Hag has now closed the chapter on the incident, declaring it resolved on Wednesday. Rashford is expected to rejoin United’s squad for their Premier League clash with Wolves tonight.
During a BBC Breakfast interview this week, Neville addressed Rashford’s lack of discipline, highlighting how Sir Alex Ferguson would have reprimanded the England international for creating an unwanted distraction during a crucial stage of the campaign.
Once more, Neville touched upon the matter in this week’s episode of The Overlap. He expressed his opinion that individuals within Ten Hag’s dressing room were probably responsible for leaking stories implying that players were ‘angry’ and turning against Rashford.
‘Reading the headlines in the newspapers and the stories, it feels to me that there’s a few people briefing against him,’ the former United and England right-back said on The Overlap.
‘There are things in there that his team-mates are sick of him, he’s distant in the dressing room.
‘There’s things that have come out that mean there are people in the dressing room – or connected to the dressing room.
‘Sometimes you think about support in the dressing room – who is grabbing a hold of him in that dressing room and saying, “Sort your s*** out”.’
Legendary ex-United skipper Roy Keane said Rashford had no option but to hold his hands up and concede that he had been an ‘idiot’.
‘The penny has to drop for him,’ Keane said. ‘When we went into the dressing room, guys wouldn’t pat you on the back and saying, “Well done for missing training yesterday”.
‘I came back late one time, I went to Nottingham to watch a reserve match, I’d only just come to Manchester United and came in four or five hours late.
‘You’re talking about Marcus getting that protection – sometimes you are on your own. You’re 26, you’re an experienced player in the dressing room. ‘You must hold your hands up and say, “I have been an idiot”.’
According to Keane, Rashford is ‘in trouble’ if the off-field issues begin to seriously affect his professionalism and level of performance.
‘He’s a young lad, lots of pressure and he’s local, but it doesn’t look like he’s enjoying his football anymore,’ the former Republic of Ireland midfielder added.
‘It goes hand in hand, what is happening off the pitch and on it. ‘Football looks like it’s a chore to him, and it shouldn’t be. There’s pressure on everybody there, but he’s a big player for Manchester United. He’s shown before that he can produce.
‘The cars, the watches, all that is great, but don’t forget what comes first – your football.
‘Good luck with all that other stuff, but if that is becoming more important than your football, then you’re in trouble.’
