Alan Shearer warns Marcus Rashford he could be left OUT of the England squad for the Euros with the Man United star ‘under pressure’ to convince Gareth Southgate
Alan Shearer has warned Marcus Rashford that he has not done enough this season to earn a place in the England squad for the 2024 Euros this summer.
The 26-year-old went into the international break having scored in three straight games but has had a difficult campaign both on and off the pitch.
Rashford has just eight goals to his name in 35 games in all competitions, a drastic drop from last season when he scored a career-best 30 goals – the first United player since Robin Van Persie in 2012–13 who reached the milestone.
The lack of goals has been accompanied by rumors of a rift with Erik ten Hag, with the Dutchman reportedly stunned during the player’s 12-hour drinking binge in Belfast in January.
Rashford was a regular in England under Gareth Southgate, but Shearer suggested his place at the European Championship was far from guaranteed.
Alan Shearer believes Marcus Rashford is not guaranteed a place in the England squad
The 26-year-old has scored just eight goals in a season marred by problems on and off the pitch
And Shearer believes the competition for places could see Rashford miss out on a seat on the plane to Germany this summer
“If Rashford plays well between now and the end of the season it could force the manager’s hand,” the Newcastle legend said in a Q&A on The Athletics.
“But I don’t think it’s certain he’ll go, no.”
Shearer added to Rashford’s reluctance as the striker thwarted him.
‘He’s not a centre-forward, he doesn’t want to play there. “He would be a wide attacker who can play as a striker in an emergency,” he said.
‘You can see from his body language that he doesn’t want to play there for Manchester United.
‘If he is in the squad it wouldn’t be for Harry Kane, (Ollie) Watkins or (Ivan) Toney, but as a wide forward.’
Rashford, who has sixty caps for England and seventeen goals to his name, seemed to rediscover some form prior to the international break.
He scored a spectacular opener in United’s 3-1 defeat to the Etihad in the Manchester derby and converted a penalty in the 2-0 win over Everton a week later, before scoring an equalizer in extra-time during United’s epic 4-3 draw. victory over Liverpool in the FA Cup.
The Man United striker was a regular for England under Gareth Southgate
But he played just 15 minutes against Brazil on Saturday (above) and was an unused substitute for the draw against Belgium on Tuesday
However, his involvement in the friendly matches against Brazil and Belgium was limited.
The United forward was a largely peripheral figure when he came off the bench for the final 15 minutes of England’s defeat to Brazil on Saturday and was an unused substitute on Tuesday.
When asked after the draw against Belgium whether Rashford’s absence was due to injury, Southgate replied: ‘No, I wanted to see Anthony Gordon again.
“I thought he had an excellent impact in the first game and I thought (James) Maddison coming into that area might open things up for us a bit.”
There is a lot of competition when it comes to the wide spots up front, with only Bukayo Saka and Phil Foden in contention for the spot against Germany.
It leaves the likes of Rashford, Gordon, Jarrod Bowen and Cole Palmer all vying for position over the next three months.
The problem with wingers is that there are so many of them. Grealish, Jarrod Bowen Rashford, Gordon and Bukayo Saka, to name a few, so at least a few good players could be missing out,” Shearer added.
‘Grealish and Rashford are certainly under pressure because of their positions. It’s difficult, but whoever Gareth chooses, he can simply identify all the options, while he doesn’t have nearly as much depth defensively.’