Marcus Rashford: 'Reactionary' Manchester United stuck in 'no man's land'
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Wales Online
2 minutes ago
- Wales Online
The forgotten Wales and Lions star ready to spark back into life with new challenge
The forgotten Wales and Lions star ready to spark back into life with new challenge The Wales prop will be a key figure for the Dragons this season Wyn Jones (C) is at the Dragons this season (Image: © Huw Evans Picture Agency) The 2024/25 season was one to forget for the Dragons, but there are credible reasons to believe the Welsh club will be significantly more competitive this time around. There were a significant number of areas in need of fixing but none more important than the front five. Head coach Filo Tiatia and his support staff took great care to identify the right players not only to improve the club's on-field performance but to strengthen the culture. One of these players is former Wales prop Wyn Jones, who will be crucial to the club's chances of competing this season. The former Scarlets star returns to Welsh rugby after a season at English giants Harlequins. Jones will combine playing rugby with working at his farm back home in Llandovery while he and his wife have recently welcomed their first son, Lewis Wyn, into the world. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby. "As you get older and you know your transition out of the game is getting closer," Jones tells WalesOnline. "For me it was about coming home. Article continues below "We've just had our first baby, so it was nice to be able to live at home and play rugby while having family and home comforts around us. "That was best for me and the family. I help out a lot with my parents and keep an eye on the farm back home. "With the little one being born it's nice to be closer to the family. "When you are younger you never think about life after retirement, but when you cross 30 you think okay I'm probably getting closer to the end. "You have a different outlook once you get over the 30 mark and you have to look at the future as well." Back on Jones' farm in Llandovery his family has around 400 acres of land which comprises 100 cattle. "I'll probably go back to the farm and take that over," Jones tells WalesOnline when asked what he'll do when he eventually retires. "I'll be trying to keep my hand in there while still playing rugby. "Rugby still comes first as it always does but when I was in London it was more difficult to keep my eyes on things and keep my hand in more than it is now. "I literally do anything on the farm. "If I'm tired and need a day off it will be lighter duties if anything at all and some days when I'm tired after training if there's jobs that need doing I'll help out. "It could be anything from cattle work to sheep work to tractor work. There's a range of different things all depending on the time of year really. I think it gives me a good balance. "If you have a bad day in training you can go out and do something on the farm and completely switch off. On days off it helps me switch off from rugby. "That's probably been the key for me having something else to focus on when you've had a good day in rugby or won a grand slam, there's always something that's gone wrong on the farm to bring you back down to earth - or vice versa. "It kind of brings you back down to earth. Rugby will come first whatever happens and that's always been the case or it never would have worked." But as Jones says rugby comes first and he will undoubtedly play a key role for the Dragons this season. The 48-cap Wales international who toured with the British & Irish Lions to South Africa in 2021 will bring a hard edge and scrummaging prowess to the Dragons front-row. Join WalesOnline Rugby's WhatsApp Channel here to get the breaking news sent straight to your phone for free "I'll bring a bit of experience," Jones tells WalesOnline. "They've got a young squad here. "They've brought in the likes of myself, Dillon (Lewis), Thomas Young, Seb (Davies) and Levi (Douglas). "Last season they were winning games at 60 minutes and then it slipped away from them. "It's just adding that little bit of experience and trying to get those games over the line to get more wins under our belt. "A lot of recruitment has been done in the front five and the pack especially." Tiatia's side recorded only two wins last season but they should expect a better return this time around after an aggressive recruitment drive. The likes of Jones, Young and Lewis, among others, will be tasked with improving the competitiveness of the Dragons pack, while they will also complement some of the club's bright young talent in the shape of Jordan Morris, Brodie Coghlan, Dylan Kelleher-Griffiths and Nick Thomas, among others. "A lot of recruitment has been done in the front five and the pack especially," he said. "I've been very impressed with the young boys coming through. "You've got Dylan and Jordan, two young looseheads who have been training really well. I've been really impressed with those two. "They've got plenty of questions to ask which is great and hopefully I can help them along as well. "I've also been impressed with Brodie, the hooker. "There's a lot of good young youngsters here but they need a few years to get some more game time under their belts and some more time in the environment. "It's looking very positive and I truly believe we can be competitive this year." Get the latest breaking Welsh rugby news stories sent straight to your inbox with our FREE daily newsletter. Sign up here. Times are tough in Welsh rugby at the moment with the Welsh Rugby Union working behind the scenes to put a new structure in place for the professional game. A reduction of professional clubs is a possibility but Jones insists what goes on in the boardroom will not affect the team's performance this season. "It was refreshing going to England and not having to go to crisis meetings!," joked Jones. "It's above our pay grade. We turn up and do our professional job as best as we can. "We just leave people above us to sort it out. It's probably been going on for too long I'll be honest and it needs to get sorted out sooner rather than later. "It's above my pay grade so I'll just leave them to it. There has been a lot of change at the Dragons this year. "I've been very impressed with the training facilities, the staff and everything around the place having been at the Scarlets for years and knowing where the other regions train. "This is by far the best training facility and everything is here. We can't use that as an excuse. It's very positive here. "I think the coaches are really good and I really think we can take strides forward." Article continues below Jones played a straight bat when asked about the prospect of a Wales recall, but if he can help turn the Dragons pack around a phone call from Steve Tandy is not out of the question.
Spectator
3 minutes ago
- Spectator
What Marcus Rashford gets right – and wrong
Marcus Rashford, formerly of Manchester United, now of Barcelona, has opened up about his time at Old Trafford in a podcast interview with Gary Lineker (and an excitable Micah Richards) ahead of the start of the Spanish and English seasons on Friday. Despite Lineker interceding as often as possible to talk about his glory days in Spain (did you know he once played for Barcelona? and got a hat-trick against Real Madrid?) Rashford managed to get in some astute and revealing comments about the modern game and how topflight clubs (and one in particular) are often their own worst enemies. It is refreshing to hear such honest and forthright views, expressed seemingly without so much bitterness as frustration Rashford, who more than any other player witnessed the psychodrama of the post-Alex Ferguson Manchester United, pulled at the threads of the Gordian knot of his former club's seemingly interminable malaise (United finished 15th last year losing 18 games in the process). Rashford seems to lay on the blame on a 'reactionary' (meaning reactive) mindset which saw managers fired before they had had sufficient time to establish any sort of system. Rashford saw nine different managers (full and caretaker) come and go and it seems to have been dizzying: for example Louis van Gaal wanted to play with flair, his successor Jose Mourinho just wanted to win at all costs and wouldn't criticise or offer advice to Rashford on his off-days if United had still managed to win. 'People say we've been in a transition, but the transition hasn't started yet', Rashford continued, using the present tense for his former club (he is still a fan). 'You have to make a plan and stick to it. We've had that many different managers and that many different ideas that you end up in no man's land… if your directions always changing, you can't expect to win the league'. He highlighted the importance of having 'principles', such as existed during the fabled Fergie era and which permeated throughout the entire club, but, he believes, no longer do. Another part of the problem it would seem is the at times hysterical denunciations of former players. Rashford took a swipe at the old pros (surely Gay Neville and Roy Keane) who have made a habit of seemingly unfiltered clickbaity rants about current players and teams. Rashford said he would never do that and had no interest in being a pundit post-retirement, despite Lineker's rather unctuous assurances that he would make a great one. Some might suggest a degree of inconsistency in Rashford's argument. Managers may be dispensed with far too quickly but it could be argued that Rashford was given ample chances, perhaps even too many. He played 426 games for the club scoring 138 goals. At times he threatened to be the answer to the club's prayers for a consistent bang-them-in-every-week striker in the mould of a van Nistelrooy, van Persie or Andy Cole, without ever quite nailing the role. He was finally farmed out to Villa last year from whence he has moved onto Barcelona in what many see as a somewhat generously offered and possibly final chance at the very big time. Rashford perhaps doesn't appreciate the enormous commercial pressures that top clubs face, with massive rewards and penalties for failing to secure a Champion's League place, finishing in the bottom half of the league or God forbid relegation. With literally hundreds of millions at stake the pressure to fire a manager and possibly revitalise a team and thus save the season must be immense – and it wasn't quite like that in the Fergie era. In that light, the decision to keep United's current manager Ruben Amorim despite a nightmare season seems positively enlightened – Europa cup-winning Angelos Postecoglou was shown the door. The average tenure of a Premier League manager (according to a study by Issuu) is 1.42 years. Still, it was refreshing to hear such honest and forthright views, expressed seemingly without so much bitterness as frustration, from a player who been criticised for lacking commitment but seems to have moved on. There was no mention of changing the world, his previous obsession, and Rashford looked to be fully focused on his career. He admitted to sometimes playing disappointingly at Manchester United and seemed committed to a fresh start (including language lessons) in Spain and cementing his place in the England squad ahead of next year's World Cup. As evidence of this, when Linker suggested Rashford had been overly criticised in the past because of his skin colour, Rashford refused to take the bait, preferring to stick to football matters. At a time when the FA has finally begun to unwind it's long and lamentable association with Stonewall, and taking the knee, rainbow laces and arm bands appear to be on the way out, it was a further signal of a welcome change in the football zeitgeist. As for Lineker, he will apparently soon present a quiz show called The Box. Many will be wishing all that woke baggage which he so enthusiastically championed could be put in one, which would then be securely sealed, and we could all get back to just talking about football.
Daily Record
4 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Luca Stephenson sees Dundee Utd return path almost cleared as Jim Goodwin gets ducks in a row for Liverpool loan
United have used up their six international loan slots but are executing their plan for free one up to get Stephenson signed up again Dundee United are in talks to sign Dario Namoo on a permanent basis - in a bid to pave the way for Luca Stephenson's return. The Tannadice club have an option to buy the Finnish under-21 cap and are set to trigger that just now to buy him from St Polten. That will open the way for United to re-sign Stephenson from Liverpool for the season. The 21-year-old, who has agreed a new deal with the English champions, is back training with United but can't sign until the Tannadice club free up one of their six international loan slots. Boss Jim Goodwin said: "It's not confirmed yet. I'm not going to lie to you, but there is a little bit of red tape at the moment. 'But once we get that admin side sorted, I'm confident that Luca will get done. (Sunday) That is the hope. 'If we can get all our ducks in a row over the next 24 to 48 hours then that would allow us to include him in the squad (for Sunday's cup game at Kilmarnock). 'I think just to have him and Julius (Eskesen) in the squad for Sunday would be a great boost to everybody." Goodwin has been chasing Stephenson, who was his young player of the year last season, all summer. He predicted: 'If we do get the deal done then we're getting a player that's really fit and in a good place. "He's played lots of good minutes and he's been training and available every day. 'So it's a very straightforward one for us, him coming back into the group. "He knows how we work, he knows what we expect and he's one that drives standards daily in training and sets a great example in the games. 'He's just a good boy, but a really good footballer as well. 'I think I said to you guys at the end of the season and throughout the summer what my thoughts were on Luca. I've had good conversations with Luca over the summer. 'We've spoken to his representatives. We've had conversations with Liverpool. There's been a lot of clubs interested in Luca. "But he loved his time at Dundee United last year. He built up a great rapport with his teammates, with the supporters. 'I think the supporters loved him and appreciated what he gave to the cause last year, especially when there was a considerable period of time he was playing through a double hernia injury that not most people would have done. 'But the type of character that he is, he wanted to play through the pain barrier because he knew what was at stake for the team.'He's played a lot of minutes, which is a good thing for us anyway.' Stephenson's return and the signing of Julius Eskesen will boost United's midfield options and both are expected to be done in time for the the Premier Sports Cup clash with Kilmarnock. It comes at a good time with Isaac Pappoe suffering ligament knee damage and unlikely to return until into the new year. They are in contact with Ferencvaros to see how they want to plan his rehabilitation. The United manager confirmed: 'It's a little bit of everything at the moment. 'We feared the worst at the time. He's a hardy little boy and he wouldn't have stayed in if he wasn't hurt. He certainly wouldn't have gone off on a stretcher. 'At the time, we felt it was bad, there was a lot of laxity in the knee. So he's stretched a lot of ligaments. "It's not ruptured or anything like that, but there is discussion to be had around what the rehab looks like. 'If it requires surgery or do we just leave it and let it heal on its own? But it is ligament damage, yeah. 'I would imagine it will be into the new year anyway. I can't really put a time on it, but it certainly won't be this side of the new year.'
