Marcus Rashford is planning to take some time to reset mentally after acknowledging he has endured a “challenging season”. The England forward was left out of Gareth Southgate’s training squad for Euro 2024 after scoring just eight goals in all competitions for a struggling Manchester United side who finished eighth in the Premier League.
But after helping his club end the season on a high by beating Manchester City in Saturday’s FA Cup final, the 26-year-old will now look to make the most of his summer of rest.
As he announced his decision to step away from his social media accounts for a few weeks, Rashford – who last month said “enough is enough” after receiving online abuse – responded again to his critics.
He wrote on X: “It’s time to come off socials for a few weeks. I plan to rest and reset mentally after a challenging season individually and collectively.
“Thanks to the fans that stood by me through a difficult period. To the ones that didn’t, just remember at United, we always stick together.”
Rashford’s teammate Luke Shaw did make Southgate’s provisional squad despite injuries restricting him to only 15 appearances for United this season, the last of them in February. The full-back has addressed criticism over his apparent availability for his country, but not his club.
Shaw posted on Instagram: “I don’t normally react to things I see on social media, but there’s a lot of people questioning my loyalty to this club and asking how I am fit for England but not United.
“The reality is I am not 100% fit for either right now, but I am doing everything I can and constantly working to be. I have been at this club for 10 years through highs and lows and for anyone to question my loyalty is obviously frustrating.”
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Meanwhile, his United teammate Anthony Martial bade an emotional farewell to the club after confirming his nine-year stay at Old Trafford was over. The 28-year-old France international joined the club in a £36m move from Monaco in September 2015, but has not played a senior game since December after undergoing groin surgery and his departure was widely expected.
In a statement on Instagram, he said: “It’s with great emotion that I write to you today to say goodbye. After nine incredible years at the club, the time has come for me to turn a new page in my career.
“I’m leaving to take on new challenges, I’ll always be a Red Devil and I’ll continue to follow the club’s results with passion.”
During his time in England, Martial has won the Carabao Cup, the FA Cup and the Europa League, but has struggled for consistency and slipped out of the reckoning under Erik ten Hag. In 2019, during Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s reign, he signed a contract up until this summer with the option of a further 12 months.
