Man Utd are in 'no man's land' due to constant managerial churn, says Rashford
Photo:
Graham Wilson / PHOTOSPORT
Manchester United's exiled forward Marcus Rashford has delivered a scathing assessment of the Premier League side's struggles, saying the club remains stuck in "no man's land" due to constantly changing coaches with different philosophies.
Rashford has not played for United since December after a fallout with coach Ruben Amorim, with the England international spending the second half of last season on loan at Aston Villa before joining Barcelona on another loan deal last month.
The 27-year-old, once the lynchpin of United's attack, said the last few months away from the Old Trafford side have allowed him to "take a step back" and analyse why the club which finished a lowly 15th last season has been floundering.
"People say that we've been in a transition for years but to be in a transition you have to start the transition. The actual transition hasn't started yet," Rashford said on
The Rest is Football
podcast.
"When Liverpool went through this, they got (Juergen) Klopp and they stuck with him. They didn't win in the beginning, people only remember his final few years when he was competing with (Manchester) City and winning the biggest trophies.
"To start a transition, you have to make a plan and stick to it. This is where I speak about being realistic about what your situation is. We've had that many different managers, ideas and strategies in order to win that you end up in no man's land."
United have not won the Premier League title since 2012-13, the last season of manager Alex Ferguson's career before he retired, while Liverpool have now equalled their tally of 20 league titles.
United's managerial carousel since Ferguson's exit has included David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Erik ten Hag, with each bringing vastly different playing styles.
"When Ferguson was in charge, not only were there principles for the first team but they were for the whole academy," Rashford said.
"They'd all understand the principles of playing the Man United way. Any team that's been successful over a period of time, they have principles that mean that any coach or player that comes in has to align to or add to the principles."
United have won several cups since their last league title, but Rashford attributed them to squad quality rather than systematic success.
"At times, I feel like United were hungry to win so we'll always try to adapt and sign players that fit the system. But that was reactionary," Rashford added.
"If your direction is always changing you can't expect to win the league. You might win some cup tournaments, but it's because you have a good coach, good players and match winners in your team."
-Reuters
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RNZ News
18 hours ago
- RNZ News
Late Salah, Chiesa goals give Liverpool win in thrilling opener
Liverpool's Egyptian striker Mohamed Salah crosses the ball against Bournemouth on Friday. Photo: AFP Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah and substitute Federico Chiesa struck late goals as the Premier League football champions began the defence of their title by beating Bournemouth 4-2 in a thriller on the opening night of the season at Anfield stadium. On a bittersweet Friday evening charged with emotion after the July death of Liverpool forward Diogo Jota, newcomer Hugo Ekitike bagged a goal on his league debut to put the hosts ahead after 37 minutes and Cody Gakpo doubled the lead in the 49th. But Antoine Semenyo, who was the target of racist abuse in the first half that led to a pause in the game, pulled one back for the visitors in the 64th minute and completed a double 12 minutes later to rock Liverpool and shock the home fans. However, Chiesa came off the bench and sent the Anfield faithful away happy with an 88th-minute strike after goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic swatted away a ball into the box by Salah, who scored himself deep into added time to wrap up the three points. "Fantastic," Liverpool boss Arne Slot said of Italian forward Chiesa's goal. "He came in in the end because we needed a goal. For him then to score in such a moment is special. "It's even more special because the fans have supported him. It's nice he gives them something in return with a great goal." With Liverpool ahead again, Salah chased the ball past the defence before cutting inside and firing into the bottom corner with a 94th-minute goal that put the Egyptian joint-fourth with Andy Cole on the all-time Premier League scorers' list with 187. Liverpool's fans hold up a banner to pay tribute to late Portuguese forward Diogo Jota, at Friday's match against Bournemouth. Photo: AFP An emotional Salah pointed to the heavens and flapped two hands to mimic Jota's shark goal celebration. He headed for The Kop stand after the final whistle, and wiped away tears while applauding the fans who were singing their Jota song to the tune of "Bad Moon Rising." The night started with an emotional minute's silence for Jota and his brother Andre Silva, who died in a car crash. Fans fought back tears as they sang "You'll Never Walk Alone." Ekitike, who has joined from Eintracht Frankfurt, was the most impressive of Slot's close-season signings in a spending spree topping £300 million ($US406.53 million). "Obviously I think it was a good performance, I could do better," said the French forward - who held up two fingers in one hand, and made a zero with the other in a tribute to Liverpool's Jota, who wore number 20 - after his goal. "But the most important thing was winning, the mentality we showed. Obviously we wanted to win tonight for the people who came and for Diogo," added the 23-year-old forward. Referee Anthony Taylor stopped play at a Liverpool corner in the 29th minute to address the racism allegation incident, summoning both managers to the touchline for a briefing. Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk and Bournemouth counterpart Adam Smith were then called over to the benches for further instructions before play resumed four minutes later. Following half-time, an anti-discrimination message was read out to the crowd at Anfield. "We're very concerned about the allegation of discrimination from an area of the crowd," the FA said in a statement. "Incidents of this nature have no place in our game, and we will work closely with the match officials, the clubs, and the relevant authorities to establish the facts and ensure that the appropriate action is taken. Liverpool coach Arne Slot was upset about the incident. "It is clear that we do not want this in football," he said. "We definitely don't want this at Anfield ... This should never happen in football, let alone at Anfield. Bournemouth coach Andoni Iraola added: "Straight away, Antoine and the referee told us. The person has been identified. "It's a big shame that these things keep happening. It's the first game of the season, a lovely game of football, and I have to speak about these things happening." The incident at Anfield follows reports of Tottenham Hotspur's French forward Mathys Tel being subjected to racist abuse on social media after missing a penalty in his team's Super Cup defeat by Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday. - Reuters
RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
Forever Auckland FC: Dame Julie Christie and Auckland FC CEO Nick Becker
Photo: Forever Auckland FC You could say the Ted Lasso of Kiwi Football is arriving on our screens. Forever Auckland FC is a new eight-part docuseries, featuring players, coaches, owners and fans following the birth, rise and behind the scenes machinations of New Zealand's newest football club. Mihi is joined by producer Dame Julie Christie and Auckland FC CEO Nick Becker.
1News
2 days ago
- 1News
Cricket Australia warns some Test nations will go 'bankrupt'
While the West Indies tries to determine a way to improve its once-fearsome Test team, Cricket Australia chief executive Todd Greenberg warns that some rivals — without naming names — will go 'bankrupt' if they continue to play the longest form of the game. Greenberg, a former Australian Cricketers' Association chief who took over at the sport's national governing body in March, believed "scarcity in Test cricket is our friend, not our foe." "I don't think everyone in world cricket needs to aspire to play Test cricket, and that might be OK,' Greenberg told media at an event marking 100 days to go before the Ashes series Down Under between England and Australia. There were 12 full members of the International Cricket Council eligible to play Test matches. They were Australia, England, South Africa, West Indies, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Ireland. But Test cricket has taken a back seat to the shorter forms of the game — one-day internationals and the even more popular, made-for-television, Twenty20 matches. The T20 format included the world's most popular cricket tournament, the Indian Premier League. ADVERTISEMENT 'We need to make sure we invest in the right spaces to play Test cricket where it means something, and has jeopardy, and that's why the Ashes will be as enormous and as profitable as it is because it means something," Greenberg said. There have been suggestions that a two-tier Test system be developed to create more balanced results between the Test cricket haves and have-nots. West Indies this week held a two-day emergency summit for Caribbean cricket which included greats Brian Lara and Clive Lloyd. They were hoping to help create strategies to lift West Indies back toward the top of the international Test format they dominated back in the 1970s and early 1980s. The summit was called after a West Indies line up scored just 27 runs in its second innings – one run short of the all-time Test record for low totals — while losing the third of three tests to Australia. Lara said, after the summit, that the Caribbean squad needed to take small steps to return to its once-vaunted place in Test cricket. 'It's a long road, not something that's going to happen tomorrow,' Lara said, adding that the review was long overdue. "It was not about the 27 runs. If it was 57 or 107, would we be feeling any better? I don't think so. It's the fact we've got something to address. 'And for us to get back on top or be a competitive nation in world cricket, we've got to address these situations shortly, quickly and hopefully we can reap the benefit in years to come.' Greenberg says it might be too late for some teams. 'A lot of traditionalists might not like that,' he said. 'I'm not suggesting I know the number that will play, but literally we're trying to send countries bankrupt if we force them to try to play Test cricket.
