What's wrong with Marcus Rashford? Why the Man United star has had a massive drop off

Marcus Rashford was unstoppable during Erik ten Hag’s debut season at Manchester United as he posted the best attacking numbers of his career. Rashford was United’s talisman as they ended their six-year trophy drought, but his form has slumped this campaign and he’s hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons in recent days.

Rashford missed training on Friday ahead of United’s FA Cup win over Newport County and he was subsequently left out of the matchday squad, but images emerged of him in a nightclub on Thursday night. Ten Hag repeatedly labelled Rashford’s conduct as an ‘internal matter’ after beating Newport but the Dutchman is notoriously a strict disciplinarian, as Jadon Sancho discovered after undermining him publicly. While speculation will rage over Rashford’s punishment, the England striker’s downturn in form should already have alarm bells ringing.

The fall-off in Marcus Rashford’s attacking numbers

Marcus Rashford burst onto the scene in February 2016 when he scored twice on debut against FC Midtjylland before following it up with another brace against Arsenal in the Premier League. The 26-year-old, however, has struggled for consistency across his career but he delivered on his undoubted potential last season. Rashford stepped up after Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure to firmly become the figurehead of United’s attack with 30 goals and 11 assists in 56 appearances.

Hitting the 30-goal mark helped Rashford eclipse his record goalscoring return of 22 in the 19/20 campaign, but he’s failed to replicate those numbers this season. The versatile forward has only scored four goals in 26 games - all in the Premier League - and two of those goals arrived in his last two league games. Rashford’s goal in the 2-2 draw with Tottenham earlier this month was his first in over 16 hours at Old Trafford - a drought stretching back to last May. Rashford averaged 0.63 goals per 90 mins in 22/23 but that has dropped considerably to just 0.2 goals per 90 this season. Rashford’s assist numbers have improved slightly this season, from 0.23 assists per 90 to 0.3 assists per 90, but his overall performances have dropped considerably.

Why has Marcus Rashford failed to perform?

Factors behind Rashford’s slump this season can be split into two categories - collective and individual. United have struggled massively compared to last season, especially as an attacking unit. There’s been a noticeable lack of cohesion in United’s attack, with players guilty of questionable decision making and being selfish. United averaged 1.53 goals per game last season in the league but that’s dropped to 1.14 goals per game this campaign. Remarkably, only Crystal Palace, Burnley and Sheffield United have scored less goals in the league than United - their xG has also dropped slightly from 1.76 per 90 to 1.66. United have been decimated by injuries, which has restricted their effectiveness in building patterns of play with Rashford suffering from Luke Shaw’s absence. Shaw is one of United’s most important players in their build-up structure and he regularly provides overlapping runs for Rashford, which creates space for him to cut in on his right-foot.

Rashford, however, must take responsibility for his performances this season in his preferred role on the left-wing. As the graphic above shows, Rashford's form across his career is patchy and he's failed to develop into an unquestionable world-class attacker. The England international excels when he can exploit space behind opposition defences when they play a high-line and on the counter-attack. Ten Hag stressed in pre-season that he wanted to turn United into “the best transitional team in the world" and Rashford’s skill on the counter remains an asset. But he regularly struggles to have a similar impact against low-blocks when he’s often guilty of trying to do too much himself or being one-dimensional and cutting in on his stronger right-foot. Rashford’s attitude and work-rate have received justifiable criticism this season and he looked completely disinterested in an away defeat to Newcastle United. Nicky Butt, the former United midfielder and head of academy, has known Rashford since he was a child and he questioned his application last week.

He said: "Rashford is a world class talent who's just not happy in his life or football or whatever it is. He's just not happy. And I tell my son who's 16, 'if you're not happy playing football, then you're not gonna play well'. So that's the position he's in. Whatever the dynamic is, I don't know. I'm very defensive of Marcus because I've known him since he was eight and maybe I'm not the right person to speak about him because I'm very loyal to people that I really care about and he's one of ours. And he is a great lad, an unbelievable talent, but even I will say he needs to sort his head out because he's not happy at the minute and he's not working hard enough. I know what I think, but I can't compare myself to Marcus because he's in a s**thole of a changing room right now. Let's be perfectly honest, I was in an unbelievable dressing room. You couldn't have picked or dreamt a better training room. Marcus isn't and it's not the same."

What next for Marcus Rashford?

Rashford penned a new deal last summer until 2028 on significant wages that few clubs in the world could match. United legend Roy Keane suggested Rashford has lost his hunger after signing his lucrative new deal and he’s facing increasing scrutiny after his most recent off-field demeanour. Ten Hag has set a precedent with how he disciplined Sancho over his professionalism and it will be fascinating to see if Rashford features against Wolves on Thursday - Ten Hag dropped him at Molineux last season for being late to a meeting.

United’s attacking options are already depleted with Sancho’s exit to Dortmund and Anthony Martial so they can ill-afford to lose Rashford - their joint most valuable player alongside Bruno Fernandes - through ill-discipline. Rashford’s body language and general demeanour has been concerning for some time and Alejandro Garnacho’s emergence will cast doubts over his long-term future. While Garnacho has impressed on the right-wing recently, the Argentinian’s preferred position is on the left and he’s shown glimpses that he can develop into a world-class talent. Rashford has enjoyed some special moments in a red shirt over the years but he’s arguably not delivered on his potential with 127 goals in 385 goals for the club. United are embracing a new dawn after Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s acquisition of sporting control and Rashford will need to prove that he’s committed to being part of the journey.