I played with Marcus Rashford under Ole Gunnar Solskjær – now I feel sorry for him

One of Marcus Rashford’s former teammates under Ole Gunnar Solskjær has admitted that he feels sorry for the Manchester United player amid his current struggles.

Marcus Rashford is set to leave Manchester United in 2025 after a revealing interview in which the 27-year-old admitted he is ready for a new challenge.

Once a key figure in United’s attack, Rashford’s performances have declined since his stellar 30-goal season under Erik ten Hag in 2022/23. Under Rúben Amorim, he has struggled for game time, with Amad Diallo and Bruno Fernandes favoured in attacking roles.

Rashford has been part of Manchester United for nearly 20 years, making an explosive debut at 18. He announced himself to the world with two goals against FC Midtjylland in the Europa League, followed by another brace against Arsenal in his Premier League debut.

With United now reportedly open to offers of around £40 million, Rashford’s departure seems inevitable as he prepares to start the next chapter of his career away from Old Trafford.

Rashford gains sympathy from his former United teammate

While much of the football world have been discussing whether Rashford should leave United and where he should transfer to in the summer, he has been gaining sympthy from some of his former teammates.

One of these players is former centre-back Phil Jones, who was an ever-present at United during the first six seasons of the 27-year-old’s senior career at Old Trafford, including his fantastic seasons under Ole Gunnar Solskjær.

Although his career was hampered with injury, Jones spent a lot of time with Rashford has the winger grew in stature at United, and has explained that he feels sorry for the player.

“I feel sorry for Marcus Rashford. I know there’s that little kid in him who loves playing football and loves the club,” Jones said on BBC Radio 5 Live.

“It has been a difficult period for him and a hard one to deal with. In hindsight, he will look back and think, ‘I might have been able to handle it all a bit better.’

“It is clear that he’s not enjoying football. He has to detach himself from the outside noise, and he has to get back to enjoying playing football again.”

What Neville thinks about Rashford’s United career

Another former United defender, ex-club captain Gary Neville, has had his own say on the matter of late, feeling that Rashford’s career at the club will soon be over after he has been left out of the last three Amorim squads.

“It is not really big team news any more,” Neville told Sky Sports when asked for his reaction to the news. “It is something of a norm, a pattern [that] has developed over the last week. It was a surprise last weekend.

“It is getting to the point where you leave him out three games on the bounce something really is obviously going wrong or has gone wrong and it is not looking great for both Marcus’s future at the club or Manchester United keeping him either.

“I suspect it is getting to that point in the journey where it has got an inevitable ending.”

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