Alan Shearer has told Marcus Rashford to ‘sort himself out’ as a January move away from Manchester United appears ‘really difficult’ and forget about his England prospects.
Rashford, 27, would welcome the chance to leave Old Trafford during the January transfer window after recently admitting he was ‘ready’ for a new challenge.
The England international has been at Manchester United since the age of seven and part of the club’s first-team since early 2016, making over 400 appearances over the past ten seasons.
Speaking after being left out of last month’s Manchester derby by new Old Trafford boss Ruben Amorim, Rashford said: ‘If I know that a situation is already bad I’m not going to make it worse.
‘I’ve seen how other players have left in the past and I don’t want to be that person. When I leave I’ll make a statement and it will be from me.
‘When I leave it’s going to be no hard feelings. You’re not going to have any negative comments from me about Manchester United. That’s me as a person.
‘For me, personally, I think I’m ready for a new challenge and the next steps.’
Rashford’s poor form saw him left out of England’s squad for Euro 2024 last summer and he will struggle to earn a recall under new Three Lions manager Thomas Tuchel.
He has scored 17 goals in 60 games for England but Shearer says Rashford needs to ‘sort himself out’ before thinking about reviving his international career.
‘For Marcus Rashford, hard work and the correct attitude will see him get back to his best,’ the Premier League record goalscorer and ex-Three Lions striker told Betfair.
‘I don’t know what’s gone on, but something must have happened for him to do that interview and say that it’s best for him to leave Old Trafford.
‘You can’t just flick a switch and get back to your best form, we all have difficult periods where you might not be playing or can’t find the back of the net.
‘There’s only one way to get through that; and that’s to get your head down, work hard and then things should change for the better.
‘I think that it’s too early to talk about his England career – he needs to sort himself out and the club needs to sort themselves out as well.
‘I don’t think that he can afford yet to be looking at an England career, which has gone pretty stale.
‘He hasn’t been picked for such a long time now, and he hasn’t been playing recently, so I don’t think that anyone can entertain any England talk yet with him.’
Shearer believes a January move could prove to be ‘difficult’ for Rashford and ‘would be amazed’ if he ended up at another Premier League club.
Rashford has long been linked with French champions Paris Saint-Germain and last week rejected lucrative approaches from clubs in Saudi Arabia.
‘Whether something can be done in the next month or so, or whether he’s going to try and force his way back into the Manchester United starting eleven, I don’t know,’ Shearer added.
‘I do get the idea that it would be very difficult to get a deal done, because of all the different angles and parties involved with the deal.
‘I do think that it will be difficult to get a deal done this January, regardless of a loan or permanent deal. It’s a really difficult transfer to do.
‘There’s a lot to do and so many aspects to a transfer. First of all it’s about agreeing a fee, secondly agreeing a salary – he’s on a huge wage right now and I’d be amazed if somebody in the Premier League would be willing to match that.
‘But just because nobody reports it, doesn’t mean that there’s no interest from Premier League clubs in signing him.
‘Nothing really surprises me in football, and just because there’s been no talk doesn’t mean that there hasn’t been any enquiries whatsoever.’
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