Marcus Rashford's Role at Manchester United: Harry Maguire's Insights
Harry Maguire insists Marcus Rashford is ready to play a major role for Manchester United this season, describing the forward as “a great asset” after his eye-catching Premier League return.
Rashford made his first league start for United in 21 months in the 5-2 win over Ipswich at Old Trafford, and looked like the old threat again, constantly driving at defenders and stretching the game.
Not long ago, his United future looked all but over. A fallout with former manager Ruben Amorim pushed him out on loan, first to Aston Villa and then to Barcelona, where he would have stayed permanently had the Catalan club triggered a £26m option. They didn’t. With the transfer window closing on Tuesday night, the picture is suddenly clear: Rashford is staying at his boyhood club.
“He's a great talent,” said Maguire. “He's always a threat.
“If Marcus wants to be here, wants to work, wants to improve and help the team, of course we're willing to have him in the team.
“He could still do a lot more and I think he'll say he can do more but if we keep him fit, we keep him happy, he keeps driven and hungry, he's a great asset to have.”
Rashford’s name has carried a cloud for some time. The criticism predates Michael Carrick and goes back to Erik ten Hag’s tenure. His work-rate has been attacked, his commitment doubted, even his love for the game questioned.
Time away changed the landscape. Under Unai Emery at Aston Villa and Hansi Flick at Barcelona, Rashford rediscovered sharpness and structure. Now he returns to a club where the head coach knows him inside out. Carrick was a senior player when Rashford first burst onto the scene and later part of the coaching staff during some of his best spells.
“You've got to remember Marcus has had a wonderful career for this club,” Maguire said.
“But when you play at this club for numerous years, there's going to be bad seasons, and when the bad seasons come everyone piles on you. That's part and parcel of playing for this club.
“As a club, we haven't been perfect from top to bottom. We haven't been challenging at the top end. So, Marcus has been part of a rough ride for Manchester United.
“When that happens, players get dug out. I've been through it.”
Maguire knows that story well. He lost both his place in the team and the captaincy under Ten Hag and looked destined to leave at one stage. Now he is back in the side and speaking about another player trying to write a new chapter at Old Trafford.
“He's come back in, really fit and sharp and we're excited to have him,” Maguire added.
Carrick has likened Rashford’s return to having a new signing through the door, and the theme of revival runs through more than one corner of this United squad.
Kobbie Mainoo is another. Overlooked repeatedly by Amorim, the midfielder flourished under Carrick last season. Now he is dealing with a fresh setback after England boss Thomas Tuchel took him to the World Cup but did not give him a single minute.
Mainoo started his first game of the season against Ipswich and, after United initially fell behind, grew into the contest, snapping into challenges and knitting play together.
“I thought he was brilliant,” said Maguire.
“To say he hasn't had many minutes in pre-season, he was magnificent.
“His work without the ball has improved so much since Michael's been in. He's becoming a real monster in there, wins a lot of second balls and a lot of duels.
“The thing is he's so young. If we want him to play for this club for another 10 years, there's going to be times where he's going to go through a patch like I spoke about with Rashy and myself.
“But that's part and parcel. He's really level-headed, really composed and has great belief in his ability.
“He's going to be a magnificent player for this club for many years.”
United’s win over Ipswich may only be one game, early in a long season, but between Rashford’s resurgence and Mainoo’s maturity, it felt like more than just three points. It looked like the start of a rebuilding of reputations – and perhaps of United’s attacking identity – from inside their own dressing room.
