Marcus Rashford has been told he has only himself to blame for the decline of his Manchester United career, according to a former club masseur. The forward, currently on loan at Barcelona, has impressed with 10 goals and 13 assists in 34 appearances, but his future at the Catalan club remains uncertain.
Rod Thornley, United's first-team masseur from 2000 to 2019, claimed Rashford's body language changed behind the scenes. 'He became unhappy. He became a different person,' Thornley told The Busby Way Podcast. 'I watched this player that used to be a happy, lovely kid just moping around, especially in the club. Then it transferred onto the pitch and you saw him walking around.' Thornley added that Rashford had 'half tossed off his Manchester United career rather than it being taken away from him.'
Rashford has not played for United since December 2024 and lost his '10' shirt to Matheus Cunha under former coach Ruben Amorim. Amorim previously said he would rather name his 63-year-old goalkeeping coach as a substitute than a player who does not give his all. The academy graduate spent the second half of last season on loan at Aston Villa and trained separately from the first team in the summer before joining Barcelona.
Barcelona have an option to buy Rashford for £26 million this summer, and the player has expressed a desire to stay. However, manager Hansi Flick said: 'Marcus' performances have been really good, but we have to manage it. It's (sporting director) Deco's job to work on next season. We still have plenty more time.'
