Michael Owen believes it is only a matter of time before Marcus Rashford is dropped from Manchester United’s starting lineup, at least based on the current evidence.
The 28-year-old returned to Carrington in the summer after spending 18 months on loan between Aston Villa and Barcelona.
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Unlike his predecessor Ruben Amorim, Michael Carrick was happy to welcome Rashford back to the club, as he considered him an important addition to his squad.
Michael Owen disappointed with Rashford’s mentality
In recent weeks, Rashford has been a mainstay in Man Utd‘s starting lineup. Although he came close to scoring on a few occasions (most notably against Man City when he struck the post), the Carrington academy product has yet to deliver the desired impact.
For Owen, Rashford looks like a player who isn’t enjoying his football at the moment, suggesting the latter never wanted to return to United in the first place.
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‘On the left, Marcus Rashford has been probably the quietest of those attackers. He was quiet again today in his body language, just the glum face,” said the former Liverpool and MUFC striker via Metro.
“Surely there’s something behind the scenes that is making him look as if he’s not enjoying his football at the moment.
“Last chance saloon was Barcelona. I couldn’t believe his luck in getting a team like Barcelona. He does reasonably well out there, but not well enough for them to keep him and then they end up spending fortunes to replace him by buying Anthony Gordon.
“So, it wasn’t all perfect. It wasn’t all rosy, despite any spin that people put on it. And then he comes back to Manchester United. He’s done okay, but only okay. And he needs to probably do a little bit better in that front three because his is the position in the attack that would be vulnerable.”
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(Stats via DataMB)
Owen also believes that once Benjamin Sesko is back from his injury, Matheus Cunha could be moved to the left, with Rashford losing his starting role.
“There’s a bit of a demand for Benjamin Sesko to come back in and start, injury permitting of course. But if that happens, Cunha is going to go on the left, and Rashford would be the weak link in that attack as things stand.”
The Ballon d’Or winner insists that what Rashford lacks is the mentality of a top footballer rather than any playing attributes.
“He’s got everything that you would want in a player, and it just shows you if you haven’t got that [mentality], that is the most important thing in football.
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“When he’s confident, when he’s happy and everything then he can be a world beater. But it’s not often he’s got that between his ears ticking.
“He’s 28 now, he should be in his prime. He should be absolutely tearing defences apart, scoring loads of goals. We’re talking about what records he can break. He has got that ability to do it, and he’s shown it in patches, but just not seeing it on a consistent basis.”
Will Marcus Rashford lose his starting role at Man Utd?
(Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Unless Sesko makes a full recovery from his shin ordeal after the long international break, Carrick will have to find a different solution upfront, as Cunha hasn’t been effective as a centre-forward.
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With Amad Diallo unavailable since the start of the season, Bryan Mbeumo has been pinned to the right-wing slot. Nevertheless, many are calling for Carrick to hand the role to the young Shea Lacey, especially following his exploits in the Carabao Cup defeat to Brighton.
If the 19-year-old gets the nod on the right wing, Mbeumo would be free to lead the line, with Cunha moved to the left wing.
Hence, Rashford risks losing his starting berth even if Sesko remains on the sidelines.
It should be noted that Carrick revealed that Rashford picked up a hip issue during Sunday’s draw at Fulham, which forced the 28-year-old to vacate his place in the England squad.
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Therefore, the forward’s priority will be to overcome his physical problem as soon as possible and make sure he makes the most of his next opportunity.
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Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
