Reintegrating Marcus Rashford is a HUGE risk for Man Utd - Michael Carrick could undo the one thing Ruben Amorim got right

Rashford's standards began dipping at United in the 2023-24 campaign under Erik ten Hag, after been handed a new contract that made him the club's highest-paid player, as he breached disciplinary rules set down by the Dutchman on three occasions, most infamously by calling in sick to training after a two-night alcohol-fuelled trip to Belfast.

Ten Hag was relieved of his duties in October 2024 after United slid to 14th in the Premier League table, with Amorim swiftly lured away from Sporting CP as his replacement. Rashford responded to the change well initially, scoring three goals in Amorim's first two games in charge, but he then put in a dismal display against Victoria Plzen in the Europa League that led to him being substituted before the hour mark.

Amorim proceeded to leave Rashford out of the squad for a huge derby meeting with Manchester City, which United won 2-1, and gave a clear indication that the forward's application levels were not up to scratch when saying after the game: "You understand for so long we try something with Rash, it doesn't work. Let's continue to do the same thing or try something different? When we want to change a lot of things, when people in the club are losing their jobs, they have to fight for their place in the team."

Suffice it to say, Rashford was in no mood to "fight". Instead, he came out two days later to publicly declare he wanted a "new challenge" in an interview with Henry Winter, effectively pushing for a January move away from the club. In that moment, he burned his bridges with a large section of the United faithful, who had stood by him unconditionally after his graduation from the academy in 2016. Rashford betrayed their trust at a time when the team needed him most, and winning it back after 19 months out of the picture will take some doing.

Rashford continued to sit on the sidelines at United until the final day of the winter transfer window, when he sealed a loan move to Aston Villa. That was despite Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee's struggles in front of goal and United's continued inconsistency, with Amorim adamant that he would not select anyone who failed to meet his minimum requirements.

"The reason is the training, the way I see what footballers should do in training, in life, it's every day, every detail," said the Portuguese coach. "You can see it, we miss a little bit of pace to go and change the game. But I prefer it like that. I will put [Jorge] Vital on before I put a player on that don't give the maximum every day. So I will not change in that department."

Vital, 63 at the time, was United's goalkeeping coach, so this amounted to a roasting of Rashford's professionalism. There were even more questions about it by the end of his short-term stint at Villa Park, where he racked up 10 goal involvements in 17 appearances, helping Unai Emery's side reach the FA Cup semi-finals and last four in the Champions League.

"I missed a lot of football before joining up with them [Villa]," Rashford said after scoring twice against Preston in the FA Cup and earning a recall to the England squad. "At the minute, my body feels good and I’m enjoying my football." He failed to acknowledge the fact he was the only one to blame for his lack of football at United, or realise that the miraculous sudden change in body language didn't reflect well on his character.

Rashford's impact at Villa was overblown by the media. Yes, he settled in well and delivered some memorable moments, including a brilliant assist in a 3-2 win over PSG in the Champions League, but he wasn't consistent, and Villa declined the option to buy him outright for £40m ($54m).

Amorim did not see enough to consider changing his stance at United, either. Rashford was put straight into the manager's 'bomb squad' upon his return to Old Trafford, which meant he had to train away from the first team alongside Antony, Jadon Sancho, Alejandro Garnacho and Tyrell Malacia. Aside from Malacia, whose United career was derailed by serious injury, all of those players disrupted the dressing room with their poor attitude.

United were stuck in a cycle of failure because there was no feeling of togetherness or indication that everyone was pulling in the same direction. The first and most important step was to get rid of the deadwood, and Amorim did it in ruthless fashion.

Garnacho and Antony were sold to Chelsea and Real Betis, respectively, and Sancho joined Villa on a season-long loan, while Rashford also secured another temporary move, this time to Barcelona. This business allowed United to complete deals for new players like Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Senne Lammens, all of whom have hit the ground running in Manchester.

Amorim's footballing vision was ultimately flawed, and he couldn't bring it all together. But by the time Carrick arrived, proper harmony had been restored to the squad, arguably for the first time in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era.

Barcelona's swoop for Rashford made sense after they decided against pursuing more expensive deals for Luis Diaz and Nico Williams. They did have to cover 75% of his reported £325,000 per week wage packet, but it was still a calculated gamble as head coach Hansi Flick sought to add greater depth to his frontline.

Rashford showed he was worth the investment, registering a combined 28 goals and assists in 49 appearances across all competitions as Barca retained La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup. He even scored the goal that effectively clinched the league crown against Clasico rivals Real Madrid, firing an unstoppable free kick into the top corner past the helpless Thibaut Courtois.

"I appreciate working with him," Flick said when reflecting on Rashford's time at the Camp Nou this week. "He is a fantastic player and a fantastic person. The team will miss him, I will miss him, but it is life."

However, Rashford could only be certain of a starting spot when Raphinha was unavailable due to injury, and didn't bring the same value to the team from the left flank. Indeed, the Brazilian scored five more goals than Rashford despite playing sixteen fewer matches, and averaged 2.10 defensive actions in La Liga compared to the United loanee's total of 1.45.

Raphinha offered Barcelona more creativity and penetration on the ball and greater intensity and discipline off it. Had the former Leeds man been fully fit all season, Rashford probably would have amounted to little more than a squad player.

In the end, Barca didn't trigger their €30m (£26m/$35m) purchase option on Rashford, after unsuccessfully attempting to negotiate a lower fee with United - per ESPN. In the meantime, they've signed Anthony Gordon and Karim Adeyemi for a combined €92m (£79m/$106m).

Gordon directly replaced Rashford, having enticed Barca with his prolific strike rate for Newcastle in last season's Champions League, and his relentless work rate makes him a better fit for Flick's system. It has also been reported that Gordon will earn the same annual gross salary of €14m across his five-year contract at Camp Nou that Rashford commanded last term, so it is not just a case of Barca going for the more financially viable option.

Rashford is three years older than Gordon, and played second fiddle to him at the World Cup. He's the more industrious of the two England wingers, with the potential to get even better. The best version of Rashford has not been seen since 2022-23, when he hit 30 goals in a season for the first time in his career, and that may be when he hit his peak.

Things still won't be as rosy at United now as Rashford needs them to be to thrive, either. After a quiet summer window, it remains to be seen if they have enough depth to build on last season's third place Premier League finish and embark on a deep Champions League run.

It's understandable that Carrick and the INEOS-led ownership regime are reportedly considering Rashford's reintegration, because the Red Devils are short on the left side of the attack and through the middle, but the risk outweighs the potential reward. If United get off to a bad start and Carrick comes under pressure, history suggests Rashford will slump his shoulders instead of puffing out his chest. They would then be faced with another unwanted sideshow that could split the focus in the squad, and put the club back to square one.

The only way it can work is if Rashford shows he has changed. Former England international Michael Gray, who played in the Premier League for Sunderland and Blackburn, recently put forward a simple but powerful solution, telling talkSPORT: "If Rashford has a future at Man United, he has to do an almighty statement of why he wants to be at Man United and what the reasons were to leave the club in the first place. I think that's a priority that he has to do."

Taking responsibility for what went wrong and reaffirming his commitment to United would go a long way to mending broken relations with supporters. Gray also suggested Rashford would have to get used to being a "bit-part player" behind the likes of Cunha and Benjamin Sesko, which would require him to drop his ego and show he is prepared to knuckle down for the good of the collective. His experience at Barcelona should help in that regard.

Perhaps Carrick will have better luck than Amorim and Ten Hag did in terms of demanding Rashford's respect, too, given his sterling record at United as a player and their past relationship. In addition to their two seasons as team-mates, the United boss also worked closely with Rashford when he formed part of Solskjaer and Mourinho's backroom staff, so he will know how to bring the best out of him.

But Rashford can't just waltz back in like nothing happened. If he's not prepared to re-earn his stripes, United would be better off sticking with their existing options. Fans will have to remain patient with the team as they pray for a meaningful revolution, but it will never take off if player power is allowed to run rampant again.