'He can't keep doing this' - Marcus Rashford accused of 'wasting his talent' at Man Utd after inviting Erik ten Hag's wrath with nightclub visit

The England international was ruled out of that contest due to “illness”, but Erik ten Hag hinted that there could be more to his absence. He said: "He reported ill. Lets say, it’s an internal matter, I’ll deal with it. It’s an internal matter." Rashford was absent from training on Friday after being spotted at Belfast nightclubs on Wednesday and Thursday while visiting best friend and former academy team-mate Ro-Shaun Williams.

Rashford returned to England on a private jet, but the damage had already been done in Manchester and ex-England striker Shearer has told BBC Sport of the 26-year-old’s behaviour: “If it’s an internal matter, you’d think something is up. There’s a huge talent in there with Marcus Rashford. We’ve seen him be disciplined last season when he was late to a meeting before a game but something is clearly wrong - either at home or in his relationship with the football club. He can’t keep doing this, he can’t keep wasting his talent because it’s not right. He needs strong management, someone to get hold of him and tell him there’ll be huge regrets come the end of his career if he continues doing this. You can’t keep doing it, it needs sorting now. Thirty goals last season, four this season. When I see him play, it looks like he’s got the world on his shoulders so it needs sorting now because he can’t really deal with it.”

Shearer has previously told Premier League Productions after seeing Rashford lose his spark: “I think the simple answer is we don’t know because we’re not within the football club. But what we’re looking at is someone who clearly looks very unhappy. He looks moody, and when that’s the case you’re never going to perform at your best. Whether he feels he’s better than what’s at Old Trafford at this moment in time, I don’t know. Whether he feels let down by recruitment because he went to another levels in terms of his goals last year. The club haven’t gone to it this season which maybe he wanted or expected to. You’re not seeing a happy footballer, you’re not seeing a happy person at this moment in time in Marcus Rashford. He looks a different player for England than he does for Manchester United.”

Rashford was rewarded with a new contract at Old Trafford after posting a personal best 30-goal return last season. He has looked out-of-sorts since then and is in danger of missing out on a place at Euro 2024 if his club form does not improve – with Ten Hag needing to decide when he will be welcomed back into the United fold.