Marcus Rashford shows true feelings with four-word answer to Man Utd question

Marcus Rashford responded frankly when he was asked about the prospect of representing England if he was still at Manchester United rather than enjoying a loan spell with Barcelona at present.

Marcus Rashford said he wouldn’t have made Thomas Tuchel’s England squad if he was still at Manchester United. The 27-year-old is set to feature in the Three Lions’ squad which faces Latvia in the World Cup qualifiers on Tuesday evening.

However, his route back into the national team has been far from straightforward. Rashford broke through the Red Devils academy in 2015, and has racked up 138 goals and 78 assists in more than 400 appearances for the club since.

But the forward saw his game-time hampered after falling out with Ruben Amorim, when the Portuguese head coach took the reins of the club in the aftermath of Erik ten Hag’s dismissal last November. As a result, he spent the latter half of last season on loan with Aston Villa.

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Upon his return to the north west, Rashford was still deemed surplus to requirements by Amorim, pushing for a move away from his boyhood club as a result. He was granted his wish when Barcelona secured him on a year-long loan with an option to buy next summer for around £30million.

Rashford has ultimately flourished at the Camp Nou in the months since, with a goal and four assists to his name under Hansi Flick after just eight games. And while Rashford has undoubtedly secured more frequent playing time under the Spanish sun, he also believes that the move has allowed him to find his footing with England once more.

Speaking to ITV Sport about whether he would have made Tuchel’s squad for the World Cup had he stayed at United, Rashford replied: “I wouldn’t be playing,” as he then started to chuckle. It’s clear that the Three Lions’ head coach demands regular playing time from his stars at club level, as evidenced by his squad selection for the current qualifying campaign for the tournament.

For example, Jude Bellingham has missed international duty as a result of playing for Real Madrid just four times this season, while he previously omitted Jack Grealish from his plans for a similar reason. Speaking about his decision not to call up the Everton loanee earlier this summer, Tuchel said: “He needs to make himself available by playing.

“I think that it’s one of his key strengths; to go every three days and get better and better with every minute that he has in his legs. That’s what is missing, nothing else. I love Jack for his personality and of course his talent. He is a very unique player who can handle big pressure on the field. He is never shy of pressure.

“He grows in big matches but he’s a player who needs minutes and minutes and minutes and simply does not get them for a very long time. That’s basically everything.”

It comes as Tuchel also claimed that the only thing preventing Rashford from becoming a world-class player is a lack of consistency, which he appears to have found at Barcelona for the time being. When asked about Tuchel’s comments, Rashford explained: “For sure, consistency is a massive part of it.

“I feel I have been in an inconsistent environment for a very long time, so it is even more difficult to be consistent. But I completely agree, I think consistency is what I need to bring into my game, and I’m looking to do that.

“I want to be at my best, not sometimes, but as often as possible. When people talk about consistency, in order to be consistent in anything, not just sport, you need consistent variables in your life and the way you train.

“We have just had so many changes so far in my career. But I have to look forward, and so now that is definitely one of the things I want to put right and improve on to be at my best more often. When I am at my best, I really enjoy everything about the sport.”

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