Rio Ferdinand has claimed he knows the real reason why Marcus Rashford wants a Manchester United exit – with the forward desperate to secure a move away from the club
Rio Ferdinand has suggested Marcus Rashford is eager to part ways with Manchester United because of “over-scrutinisation for years”.
Rashford’s future at Old Trafford remains up in the air following his explosive interview last year, in which he expressed a wish to seek a new challenge. The 27-year-old forward has fallen out of favour under Ruben Amorim and hasn’t made a first-team appearance since mid-December.
The England ace has been rumoured to be eyeing a loan switch to Barcelona this month, but no deal has been struck yet – leaving Rashford anxious to sort out his future, rather than risk being benched for the remainder of the season.
Since Rashford’s declaration on December 17 that he would depart the club with “no hard feelings”, he has only made it into one matchday squad. However, ex-United defender Ferdinand believes the forward’s push for an exit is due to mounting pressure.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Ferdinand said: “Manchester United, also people around Marcus, need to make sure that he leaves in the best tact mentally as well as physically. Mentally more importantly because I think he’s been over-scrutinised for a few years now.
“But that also comes in the territory of being a Manchester United player. And when you’re held up as one of the faces of the club then that is part and parcel unfortunately of being at Man United.”
Ferdinand has stressed that Rashford’s decision is far from straightforward, pointing out that only the player and his inner circle can truly judge if seeking a fresh challenge is the right move, reports the Mirror.
“I think it’s always easy for everyone else to assume and think what he should do but I think only Marcus and his team know what are the benefits of staying in Manchester or at United.
“The only thing I would be advising him on – if I was his advisor – is he is never going to be 100% certain that the decision he makes at this crossroads is right. He is going to do something – whether he goes or stays – and when he makes that decision he will still not be 100% sure.”
With the deadline looming on February 3 for Rashford to make a move, clubs like Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund emerge as potential suitors. Amorim recently spoke about Rashford’s situation, but remained tight-lipped regarding any developments.
“I don’t know, I really don’t know,” he remarked. “Guys, it’s 10 days. We will see in the end of the window what happened. And then we will talk about that in the moment.”