Marcus Rashford was once celebrated as Manchester United’s shining star and a voice for social issues in the Premier League, but his move to Aston Villa marks a significant downturn in his reputation after a steep decline. 

When he signed a lucrative five-year deal with United in July 2023, reportedly worth £325,000 ($400,000) a week, it seemed like he was on top of the world. Fresh off a season where he netted 30 goals, the 25-year-old England international looked poised to hit his peak. 

His popularity soared both on and off the field, especially after he successfully campaigned for the UK government to change its stance on free school meals for underprivileged kids and took a stand against racism and homelessness. In 2020, he even graced the cover of British Vogue alongside mental health advocate Adwoa Aboah as one of “The Faces of Hope.” 

However, the 27-year-old’s sharp decline in performance and the fallout with his childhood club have been so significant that his loan to Villa, with a buy option, didn’t come as a shock. 

Rashford joined United at just seven years old and burst onto the scene as a teenage sensation in 2016, scoring twice on his debut against Midtjylland and doing it again in his first Premier League match against Arsenal. At 18, he became the youngest England player to score on his debut against Australia. 

He has won the Europa League and lifted the FA Cup and League Cup twice, racking up 138 goals in 426 appearances for United, but he hasn’t quite lived up to the early hype. 

The seeds of Rashford’s departure from United were sown back in December 2022. After returning from the World Cup in Qatar, where he scored three goals, he found himself in hot water with then-manager Erik ten Hag for oversleeping and arriving late to a team meeting before a match against Wolves. Although he was benched and reprimanded, he came off the bench to score the winning goal.

Rashford found himself in trouble again in January 2024 after being spotted at nightclubs in Northern Ireland. He missed training due to illness and didn’t play in the club’s 4-2 FA Cup victory over Newport.

‘Distraction’

With ongoing concerns about his work ethic, former United captain Gary Neville, now a pundit for Sky Sports, advised him to “calm down.” He noted that Rashford is experiencing a dip in form, warning that it could become part of his identity if he’s not careful. Last season, Rashford struggled to find the net for long stretches while Ten Hag faced challenges in reviving United’s performance. 

Rashford’s struggles weren’t entirely his fault, as he was shuffled between playing as a winger and a central striker by various managers, which hindered his ability to settle into one position. He was left out of England’s Euro 2024 squad and had a slow start to the season, scoring just one goal in his first 11 league matches. 

During the November international break, he was seen in New York at an NBA game, which many took as a sign that he was losing focus. However, he broke his goal drought by netting the first goal of Ruben Amorim’s tenure just 81 seconds into a match against Ipswich in November. 

But then, Amorim, who took over from the dismissed Ten Hag, shocked everyone by excluding Rashford from the squad for United’s win against Manchester City in mid-December, raising concerns about his attitude and work ethic. Shortly after, Rashford expressed that he was “ready for a new challenge.” 

Amorim has faced a barrage of questions about Rashford since then but has maintained a consistent stance. Recently, he made a bold statement, suggesting that the club’s 63-year-old goalkeeping coach had a better shot at making the team than Rashford. Neville believes that a move to Villa, who are currently eight points ahead of United in the Premier League and competing in the Champions League, would be beneficial for Rashford, stating he “had to get out of the club” after Amorim’s “brutal” comments.

“There are a number of things that are in his favour at Villa,” he told Sky Sports. “He’s going to a far better team at this moment, he’s going to a coach who’s world-class, which is a real opportunity for him.”